


Paradise Rejected

by IudexInfernalis



Series: Paradise Rejected [1]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: AU and at the same time not, M/M, season 4
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-26
Updated: 2018-04-02
Packaged: 2019-01-23 17:57:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 30
Words: 39,145
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12513012
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IudexInfernalis/pseuds/IudexInfernalis
Summary: Through an unlucky encounter with an angel Dean is thrown across time and space. He finds himself in Hell and meets Lucifer and the angels that had fought with him. What were their motives for turning against God?





	1. Thrown across

It happened in a split second. One moment Dean was there and then he was gone. At least the fighting came to a halt. It was mostly out of the confusion where the hunter had gone. Sam was standing there with his hand on the angel banishing sigil with his mouth open in shock. Cas and the other angel glared at each other but neither moved again. All three of them were trying to make sense of the situation.  
Everything had started simple, at least by their standards. Sam and Dean had run into a trap laid by the angels. They barely managed to call Cas before the fighting began. Sam was quickly drawing the sigil with his blood while Dean tried his best to help Cas. The angels clashed with blades and grace the same exact moment that Sam put his hand on the sigil. The angels were still standing there but Dean was gone. Not hurt, not dead, just vanished. There was no sign left that Dean had even been there in the first place.  
“What just happened?”  
It was Sam who first managed to speak again, breaking the uncomfortable silence. The way the two angels had been staring at each other was incredibly creepy. Did angels ever blink? That question wasn’t important though, it was Dean’s disappearance that they had to do something about. How could that even work? That sigil was meant to banish angels, not let his brother vanish.  
“I do not know.”  
At least Cas seemed as confused as Sam felt. Something went wrong this time and awfully so. The enemy angel took the opportunity to leave and Cas and Sam were left standing alone in this warehouse. Sam pulled away from the wall and grabbed his back.  
“Come on, we have research to do.”  
Cas was gone when he looked at him. Sam could only shake his head at the unpredictable behaviour of the angel. He could have at least said something before he left. That was typical for the angel though, leaving and turning up at random times. Sam went back to their motel room and started on his research. Soon enough Castiel turned up again.  
“I cannot find him.” said the angel.  
Sam frowned. “What do you mean you can’t find him? He has got to be somewhere. He can’t be dead!”  
“That is not what I said. Dean is alive, I am sure. He is just not here. Or now.”  
That didn’t help anything for Sam. It just meant that there were endless possibilities of where or when Dean could be.  
“So the best guess is that he’s somehow been thrown through time and space? That he is somewhere and in who knows what time in this universe?”  
That would make Dean incredibly hard to find, if not impossible. Sam didn’t want to think of the latter option. They had to get Dean back, no matter where he ended up being. They still had to stop the demons and angels from breaking the seals. They should have to be able to focus on other things but now he had a missing brother to find. How could he even track Dean when he had vanished through? With Dean’s disappearance it would have to be mostly Cas looking for him because Sam had no idea where to even start.  
“It seems so. For now we have to focus on stopping the seals from breaking.”  
“Are you fucking joking?”  
Sam couldn’t believe it. Cas couldn’t suggest that they set finding Dean aside for a few seals! They couldn’t stop them all anyway and didn’t Cas say that Dean was the only one able to stop them? Now suddenly he wanted to leave Dean behind. Sam had no idea what was going on.  
“It would take too much time to look for Dean now. Dean will also be able to defend himself. He would not want us to abandon this mission to search for him.”  
“You’re right. I just hope he’s okay…”  
Dean felt like he had been hit by a truck. Everything was spinning and he was lying on the ground. Never would he ever again get in between two angels fighting. That could lead to some serious damage. It took a while until he managed to open his eyes without feeling like the world around him was spinning endlessly. What he saw made him freeze. Hell, he was in Hell. It was clear to him; he had spent 40 years there. Yet it seemed different from the Hell he knew. There were no screams of souls, no walls or rooms. It seemed like an endless field of stone, fire, and lava.  
When he sat up he saw the group of people standing at the lake of fire not far away from him. No, not people. Those were angels. Strange angels. Dean had never before seen the wings of angels physically. They seemed a bit black around the edges, ruffled and with feathers missing. It had Dean questioning where he was.  
Three angels were talking to each other. One of them was clearly the leader, the other was a loud and aggressive one, and the last one seemed the typical sweet talker. You’d think one of those corrupt TV lawyers was talking. They were speaking in a language that Dean didn’t understand but from what he heard from Cas it sounded like it would be enochian.  
The leader of the angels suddenly spotted Dean and shouted at him in that foreign language. Dean shook his head and shrugged. He had no idea what that angel was saying. Maybe they would get that he had no idea. They didn’t obviously because the crowd seemed enraged and the leader was coming at Dean like he was going to attack him. Dean was bracing himself for the attack because he had absolutely no weapon on him. He could only hope that he’d die quickly. To his surprise the angel stopped in front of him and seemed to slowly repeat what he said before. Dean sighed.  
“Look, dude, I’ve got no idea what you’re trying to tell me. I barely speak Latin.”  
The angel seemed rather shocked at the language that was probably completely foreign to him. Dean knew how the guy was feeling. He was feeling the same way in regards to that language that he was now pretty sure was enochian. The angel reached out and touched Dean’s temple. At least some gestures seemed to be used by all the angels.  
“Who and what are you, stranger?”  
At least now Dean understood what was going on. The angel was just confused. Had the guy never seen a human before? Was that really Hell? What kind of angel had never seen a human before or didn’t recognize one when they saw one? Just where had he been thrown by that freakish accident?  
“I’m Dean and I’m a human. Who are you guys?”  
Confused murmurs ran through the crowd of angels. Apparently none of them had heard of humans before. Dean bit his lip. Could it be that he had been thrown back into the past? Maybe he was in Hell before humanity started. Fuck. What now? There was little he could do on his own. For once Cas could really be helpful but in that exact moment when he needed it most Cas was nowhere to be seen. The leader spoke up again, pointing at the aggressive dude, the sweet-talker and then himself.  
“This is Moloch. The one next to him is named Belial and my name is Lucifer. We are the celestial rebellion against our Father and his tyranny over the entire universe.”  
Dean was frozen once again. Lucifer and two fallen angels. The rest were fallen angels too. They had no idea about humans and Hell seemed empty except for the angels. Not even Dean, who wasn’t really the most eager about research, could miss the obvious clues as to where or rather when he was. Somehow he had landed right after the first heavenly civil war when the fallen angels first landed in Hell, before Adam and Eve were made. These were the rebels who fought against God and were just struck down into Hell.  
“Holy Shit.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, so this is my first try on AO3 and I'm excited about it. I would love criticism, be as honest and upfront as possible because I want to learn.
> 
> For those who haven't recognize the scene Dean came to, it's the beginning of the second Book in John Milton's Paradise lost. It was kind of the inspirations for this fic.
> 
> I will try to at least get a chapter up once a month. 
> 
> Thanks to everyone who read this first chapter.


	2. Introductions

Those angels were looking at him like he had just said complete nonsense. Or maybe that was just how he came across to them. Whatever, Dean had bigger things to worry about than a few angels finding him strange. Then it hit him. Of course they thought he was talking nonsense! They were angels from back before humans existed. They had no idea what 'shit' even meant. He would have to hold back on terms that hadn't been invented yet.  
"What did you say?"  
Okay, it seemed like the devil was curious what he was talking about. That was probably the strangest thing Dean ever experienced. Well, maybe if he explained what was going on they would help him. Or possibly kill him. Then again, they hadn't really questioned what a human was, so there was probably some prophesy talking about them. Speaking of prophecies, he would strangle Chuck for not saying a single word about him being thrown here.   
"It's something from in the future. It's used to express surprise and/or distaste. In this case it was simply surprise."  
Maybe there had also been a bit fear in it because he absolutely didn't expect to be standing here, talking to the angels. He had expected things more along the lines of running and looking for anything to defend himself with while fallen angels were chasing him and trying to kill him. But no, he was talking with them like they were normal people and Dean was just one of them.   
The angels were murmuring with each other, surprised to hear that he was from the future, or an alternate timeline. Dean still wasn't sure which one it was. Or if it was both. This shit was giving him a headache. Lucifer seemed more intrigued by the word 'shit' than where he came from. The fallen angel, introduced as Moloch, stepped up to Dean, which made him stiffen but despite being what 'classy' people called a 'brute' he seemed pretty friendly when he talked to Dean. Then again, Dean had long since stopped counting how many people had called him a brute before.  
"So you come from the future? What happened? Did we recover heaven?"  
"Stop it, Moloch. Whichever outcome happened in Dean's version will not necessarily be ours since his appearance altered this timeline. We should rather concentrate on the present to procure the best outcome."  
Dean was incredibly grateful that Lucifer interrupted there because he really didn't want to tell the army of fallen angels that God was still in the driver's seat and they were pretty much hated by all of heaven and the religious part of earth. Not a good idea. Then again, the devil was probably right. His appearance probably changed a lot. Hopefully he made it out of here without being killed by fallen angels that were surprisingly friendly and well mannered. That totally wasn't how the angels (fallen or not) in his timeline acted. Moloch seemed to accept Lucifer's reply. It made sense, after all. Lucifer now approached Dean and he couldn't help but notice that despite the confident pace and the overall regal behaviour the angel was carrying the scars of the war that had happened before Dean landed here.   
"I am curious about you. Despite being clearly one of the beings that were predicted to be created you do not seem to hold much fondness for our Father."  
So the term human was what they didn't know but that some kind of being would be created was something they knew. Absolute headache material. Dean was about to lie and deny that but then he remembered that he was talking to the group of angels that probably wouldn't judge him for his dislike of God. He actually had no idea how the God in this universe was, if it was the same one or a different one.   
"Let's just say that I've seen too much evil in my life to be much of a fan of this guy."  
It was incredibly surprising when Lucifer seemed sympathetic. Listening to the angels that talked about the seals and Lucifer it had seemed like Lucifer was some kind of monster without feelings and any kind of empathy. It didn't seem the case with this Lucifer. It was so strange to see someone they desperately wanted him to believe was the enemy and finding out that it wasn't even nearly as clear cut as they wanted him to believe.   
"We decided that we do not want a leader forcing everyone into submission by power alone while condemning us for how we are. The angels you see here chose me to be their leader. I did not force anyone to follow me."   
"You know, that makes sense. Noone likes a dictator."  
Dean wasn't sure that he believed what he was saying. On the other hand this was a completely different timeline and he already disliked the big guy in his timeline, so he (as much as he wanted to deny it) was inclined to believe what the devil said.   
"But if I find out that you're lying I'm gonna kick your ass."   
Initially Lucifer seemed confused but caught onto the meaning. Dean was about to conclude that this was just some kind of dream and he was really in a coma because the devil was smiling.  
"I am glad that you do not take everything you hear for the truth. It is the best way to question everything you hear and arrive at your conclusion on your own terms."  
Dean nearly chuckled because Lucifer sounded like one of those motivational calendar quotes but he had done that way too little in the past. He was only just learning how to build his own opinions and convictions. It was difficult because everyone wanted him to come to their conclusion. At least this Lucifer appreciated that he wanted to think for himself. Come to think of it, Lucifer probably went through the same thing that he did.   
"Well then." Dean said, feeling some kind of uncomfortable tension between Lucifer and him that he didn't want to explore because he absolutely didn't want to get killed. "Any way to get me back?"  
He still had shit to do in his own timeline and he absolutely didn't want to be stuck here and be useless.   
"Sadly we do not know how to bring you back. I will ask Belial to research this. He always knows how to circumvent rules. Other than that I cannot do much for you at the moment."  
Dean sighed. How likely was it then that Sammy and Cas would find a way to get him back. Maybe he would just have to accept that he wouldn't be getting home. They would look endlessly for him but never find him. That was probably the most depressing thing ever.  
“Any way I could be useful here then?”  
It was an alternate timeline, how much could go wrong if he busied himself with something? Angels could fix anything and maybe he could find out more about these fallen angels, some information that didn’t come from heaven’s side of the conflict would actually be pretty useful. It also wasn’t like he had anything better to do. Sitting around and wondering if Cas would ever find him wasn’t really the best way to spend his time.  
“We are currently discussing our next move.”  
“I say we attack again. They will not expect us this time.” Moloch said instantly.  
“It would be unwise. We need to gather strength and regroup.” Belial disagreed.  
At least now Dean knew what they had been talking about when he first landed in Hell. It also gave him somewhat of an idea when in this timeline he was.   
“In my timeline Lucifer went to Eden. There’s only two people there right now but they’re basically God’s next best thing.”  
Lucifer seemed to consider his suggestion. Dean had no idea how it would go. Instead of the hatred that was said Lucifer had for humanity, it rather looked like Lucifer was simply curious to meet them. If Lucifer would really come to hate humans in this timeline then what made him hate them?   
“Why would we need to? You are here. We can know everything we want to know if we talk to you.” Belial asked.   
“That’s difficult to explain. They’re not… really completely like me.”  
“You have to explain that one, Dean.”  
His name sounded strange when spoken by angels that only ever spoke enochian before. Moloch seemed to be trying his best but it still was strange. Dean still kind of liked the guy. Again Lucifer saved him from having to come up with an explanation.   
“It would probably be easier to see for myself. I will go there and see for myself who these beings are and what Dean means.”  
“I’ll go with you.”  
It was a spontaneous decision but it would give Dean a chance to find out more about what the Hell was going on in this timeline and why it seemed so different from the stories that he and probably every other person had heard.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all so much for the Kudos and to everyone who read my first chapter.
> 
> I'm having a lot of fun with this fanfic so far and I hope that all of you have as much fun with it.


	3. Ignorance is Bliss

Just like that Dean had the attention on every fallen angel on himself. Some were confused, some were surprised and some looked at him in a way that made clear that Dean would be ripped to shreds smaller than any microscope could see if he betrayed Lucifer. He didn’t know what to think of that since he shouldn’t alter the timeline but he also could prevent a lot of shit from happening. He’d have to wait and see. At least Belial and Moloch seemed to agree for once. Both spoke out in favour for it. Lucifer seemed to think about it for a moment but he said that Dean should come with him.  
That was why he was now standing right in front of Hell’s gates, life in the hands of the devil because no human could get out of Hell on their own.  
“Will you trust me to take you with me?”  
“I don’t think I’m going to have a choice.”  
“You do.”  
Dean rolled his eyes. Lucifer was a smartass. Another new thing about this devil.  
“Okay, how about this: I don’t have another choice since I want to come with you.”  
“Better.”  
“You’re such an ass.”  
“What does that mean?”  
This conversation took a bizarre turn and Dean was determined not to let it continue in that direction.  
“Later. For now let’s get out of Hell.”  
Lucifer was rolling his eyes this time, probably because he was incredibly curious. Also something that Dean had never seen in angels. Except maybe Cas and even that was limited.  
Without further warning Lucifer grabbed Dean and brought them out of Hell. Dean couldn’t help a surprised sound and damn if he didn’t see Lucifer’s smirk. Note to self, the devil apparently had a sense of humour… and was a total ass. They arrived a moment later in front of what looked like some kind of nature habitat, which was probably a fitting way to describe Eden. Dean looked at Lucifer and saw that he was pretty out of breath, which was strange for an angel. Come to think of it, Dean felt strange too. He rubbed his shoulder and noticed that something was missing. Cas’s handprint was gone.  
“What the fuck? What did you do?”  
It seemed like his outburst did nothing but confuse Lucifer. He probably had other things to worry about after he dragged Dean out of Hell… Oh. Lucifer had dragged him out of Hell, so his signature replaced Cas’s. He would look at his shoulder later. For now they had something to do. Dean would meet his ancestors back when they were blissfully running naked through paradise.  
“Nevermind. Let’s get inside.”  
Dean was still mentally dealing with the fact that he was walking into Eden with the devil right now. He didn’t expect it to look like in those old paintings. It was kind of like a giant garden in which just about all the different climates were present. Actually it was pretty beautiful but also really big. How were they supposed to find Adam and Eve? This wasn’t even nearly as small as Dean had imagined. He was just about to ask Lucifer when he got the answer.  
“The prophecy said that the beings would be found in the heart of Eden.”  
Even though he had no idea how Lucifer guessed what he was thinking Dean had to admit that it made sense to follow the prophecy, at least in terms of using it like a kind of map. The closer they came to the centre of the garden the more animals were running around. It seemed so peaceful. Maybe they shouldn’t interfere with this. Who knew, maybe humanity would be better off in here.  
They found Adam and Eve sitting under a tree, completely naked and strangely not even saying a single word to each other. That was the first strange thing Dean noticed. Maybe they just enjoyed quiet minute together? Lucifer stopped and Dean did with him. He wasn’t sure how to approach them. They were from a completely different time. Dean exchanged a glance with Lucifer and they stepped up to Adam and Eve. They looked up in unison and Dean grimaced. This was slowly getting creepy. Both of them looked like cult members. Dean already wanted to leave. They couldn’t though. That was the first contact with humanity and Dean was dying to know what went wrong, since everyone said that Lucifer hated humans.  
“Hey! I’m Dean and that’s my friend Lucifer.” He greeted them, only realising after he said it that it sounded like he was talking with children. Maybe he should watch what he was saying. These two were grown adults, for fuck’s sake.  
“We are the father’s creations.”  
Did they seriously just speak at the same time too? What the fuck was wrong with them? Dean was getting the creeps and the garden started looking less and less like a paradise to him.  
“Ah, nice to meet you. What are you doing?”  
“We were told to be fruitful and reproduce.”  
Dean looked at Lucifer because he needed someone not creepy to talk to him. He wasn’t sure there was anything Lucifer could do right now that would be creepier than those two. Maybe he had an answer as to what was going on there. Lucifer looked back at him and sighed.  
“They have no knowledge at all. That includes knowledge of themselves. They are not away of their individuality, that they are individuals. They lack the ability to differentiate between themselves and their surroundings.”  
There was nothing Dean could say to that. He understood what Lucifer said, he wasn’t that dumb, but fucking Hell what kind of shit was that?  
“So they’ve got no free will at all?”  
“They have free will, they are just unaware of it. They do not feel free.”  
That was so fucking stupid. It was like God was cheating with his own rules. Yeah, I’ll give you free will but you’ll have no idea that you have it. That was some high level shitty behaviour. What the fuck was the big guy even thinking when he came up with that stupid fucking idea? Dean was brought out of his thoughts when Lucifer turned to leave.  
“Hey! Where do you think you’re going?”  
“There is no way to talk to them in that state.”  
“We’ve got to get them out of it!”  
“I am not able to. They have no knowledge, including the knowledge necessary to gain knowledge.”  
“Don’t give me a headache! We can’t just leave them like that!”  
“We have to.”  
“No! No, no, no, no, no! I’m not going to let the people of this timeline be like that! We need to do something.”  
Dean paced a bit and then it dawned on him. The tree. He looked around, confusing Lucifer even more.  
“What are you doing?”  
“In the legends I’ve read there’s something called a ‘Tree of Knowledge’. That’s what they ate from against God’s wishes. It’s got to be an apple tree.”  
Lucifer looked doubtful but he went with Dean to help him.  
“What is an apple?”  
“Dude, just look for a red fruit.”  
Dean wasn’t going to let them remain in that state. If he was only back in time it would change him too and Dean would rather take another stint in Hell than be in that state. Then again, he wouldn’t even know what he was missing out on. He decided that he wouldn’t think about it and instead look for that damn tree.  
“These are red fruits. They have a strange aura.”  
The moment Lucifer said that Dean was by his side. Those weren’t apples, they were pomegranates. Then again, the bible hadn’t been that accurate in more than one case. The question now was how they would get the two of them to eat from it. He reached up to pick one but Lucifer caught his wrist.  
“There will be a connection that would tell Father in case it would be picked. We need them to pick the fruit from the tree.”  
“And how do we do that?”  
Lucifer smirked. “I have an idea.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This time I tried to get some psychology into it. To someone professional it will probably sound really stupid but I promise that I did my best.
> 
> I hope you all enjoy this chapter.


	4. Accomplice

Dean looked back at Lucifer and raised an eyebrow. Normally he would definitely be worried when the literal devil was smirking like that but this version of the devil didn’t at all seem like the completely awful type. He didn’t seem bad at all so far, actually, and that continued to baffle Dean.  
“What’s your idea?”  
“They are unable to react to outsiders in a way that would help us but they would react to an insider. If I took the form of an animal I would be able to talk to them. To them it feels like a voice inside their head and they will respond.”  
“You’re giving me a headache but if you think it works then let’s try it so I won’t be running around as some kind of brain dead zombie – No, now’s not the time to ask me about future language.”  
He knew that expression by now. It was Lucifer’s mix of a curious and completely confused expression. On anyone else it would have been endearing. Okay, maybe it was a bit endearing on Lucifer’s face too. It could be the fact that the devil so far had not at all been a threat to him. On the contrary, Lucifer had been incredibly nice and helpful.  
“So you’re going to talk to them as some kind of animal so they’ll listen to you and eat the fruit. Alright.”  
In that moment a thought hit him. Right in that moment he could change history. If he suggested a different animal he didn’t think Lucifer would object. So instead of a snake becoming Lucifer’s symbol it could be a lion, or an elephant, or a mouse, or a bunny. The devil’s bunny! Dean nearly broke out laughing from that thought alone. He was incredibly tempted to tell Lucifer to become a bunny. His evil fluffiness! Lucifer raised an eyebrow at his amusement but Dean waved him off. As tempting as it was he couldn’t fuck with the timeline too much. Who knew what kind of consequences that would bring?  
“I’d say you should take a snake.”  
“That should be a good idea.”  
Dean watched Lucifer, honestly a bit fascinated about how easily he was able to do it. Then again, if Cas’s explanation had been right then angels didn’t have vessels yet, which brought up more questions than it answered but he really didn’t want to question it. Things were already complicated enough without questioning why angels without vessels looked so human. Dean was ripped from his thoughts when the snake climbed up his body, making him shiver.  
“Did you have to do it that way?”  
Another new information; snakes seemed to be able to look amused. Or it was just Lucifer because the angel definitely didn’t play by the same rules as the animals in the garden. Lucifer was sitting on his shoulders now and Dean would have never thought that he would ever be as close to the devil as he currently was.  
“We should probably get their attention and lure them over, right?”  
The snake nodded and Dean reached into the pocket of his pants, relieved to find his phone. He had ignored it so far because there would be absolutely no reception in who-the-fuck-knows, BCE. Now it could become useful. He ignored the questioning gaze and started his playlist. The song that played first nearly made him laugh. It could be Lucifer’s theme song.  
“Suspicion is your name   
Your honesty to blame   
Put dignity to shame dishonour   
Witch hunt modern day   
Determining decay   
The blatter and disarray disfigure   
The public eyes' disgrace   
Defying common place”  
Apparently Lucifer could even look shocked in the form of a snake. Dean grinned at him and shrugged.  
“It’s called music, Lucifer. There’s a lot of that and other kinds in the future.”  
It seemed like it got their attention. Or Eve’s at least. Adam seemed too busy staring straight at the sky. The first man apparently had no idea of good music. Thankfully the men in the future rectified that mistake. It also confirmed what Lucifer said. There was free will, just no awareness of it. Still, it was a shitty state. Eve went their way and when she was close enough Dean turned it off. Then the interaction between Eve and Lucifer was pretty easy. She really listened to him as if he was just some part of her mind. That was incredibly creepy. Dean mostly kept out of it because apparently he didn’t really register that much in her mind. It was a miracle they were able to talk to him earlier.  
To Dean it felt like an hour until Eve finally reached for the apple, or rather pomegranate. She picked it and managed to open it which Dean found impressive because he so far hadn’t been able to open that fruit without a knife. Finally she took a bite and apparently those fruits taste incredibly because she was instantly running to Adam to let him try it, not even noticing that she had realised that he was someone else, a different person.  
“Thanks, Lucifer.” Dean said honestly. He looked at the snake, which smiled and went back to being Lucifer, standing next to him.  
“Really, I appreciate it. I don’t even want to imagine what it’d be like if you didn’t help me.”  
It made him feel sad that people in the future wouldn’t know how much they had to thank Lucifer for. There were bad consequences that would come but it would be worth it. Dean knew that.  
“What is music?”  
Dean couldn’t help but smile at the question. “It’s the best thing ever. It sounds strange. People make noises that sound good together and add some text to it that they like or think has a great meaning.”  
Lucifer frowned at him and Dean chuckled a bit at the confused expression. “You’ll understand it when humans invent it. Give it a few millennia.”  
“Should I have that much patience?”  
“Believe me, it’s worth it. You can kick my ass if you think I’ve promised too much.”  
That actually made Lucifer laugh and Dean laughed along with him. It was so casual and Lucifer was such a friendly guy. He still hadn’t found out what caused the famous hatred for humans or if it even was the case. None of the fallen angels had exhibited any of the attributes that they were described with. Then again, he had no idea if any of the texts describe Belial as a sweet-talker or Moloch as a brute. He hadn’t really gotten to know the others but they so far hadn’t done anything to make hi think that they were the monsters they were pictured as.  
In that moment the sky darkened and Dean quickly pulled Lucifer into some bushes as a reflex. His instinct told him to seek shelter and hide. Something was happening. Looking over he saw that apparently Adam had now taken the fruit too and they seemed completely panicked as a light shone onto them and Dean realised what was happening.  
“Shit.”  
“Fitting use of the word, Lucifer, but we really should get out of here before we’re gonna make contact with God’s red right hand.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to say a big thanks to everyone who left kudos and comments. You are helping my motivation a lot and I love seeing that someone likes my work.
> 
> The song Dean played was The Shortest Straw by Metallica. I highly recommend the song.
> 
> Lastly, red right hand refers to the Second Book of Paradise Lost and represents God's wrath.


	5. Allies

“You are right. We should hurry.”  
Dean didn’t wonder how Lucifer understood that reference. They had to focus on getting out of the garden. Lucifer grabbed his hand and pulled him along, not hurting him despite probably having the strength to crush diamonds. Dean was still surprised how much care the devil showed. He didn’t think he ever would stop being surprised. They made it in time, just passing the gates as the earth began to shake. Dean looked back, kind of feeling guilty.  
“Stop it. Do not feel guilty. We saved them from a lifetime of ignorance.”  
Lucifer seemed to know what he was thinking about. And somehow he managed to be incredibly comforting.  
“You’re a pretty nice guy, you know that?”  
The devil seemed to appreciate the words and for a moment they just silently stood there. It was a strangely comfortable silence. Was Lucifer still holding his hand?  
Their silence was interrupted by Adam and Eve quite literally being thrown out of paradise. It wasn’t really unexpected; they both knew that God had some anger issues. Hopefully the guy would seek therapy for that in the future.  
“Okay, let’s go.”  
“No, Dean. They just lost their home. We will go to them and I will offer them to come to Hell with us. They do not deserve to be left out here to fend for themselves.”  
Dean looked at Lucifer and couldn’t hold back a smile. It was so strange to see Lucifer be compassionate. Dean would have left quickly to get to safety but Lucifer wanted to help. He was slowly getting convinced that this was not the same devil and he landed in a different universe because that simply could not be the hateful being that Cas had described.  
They walked up to the two humans and Eve gasped when she saw them. She seemed panicked.  
“They did it! They convinced me to eat the fruit!”  
Dean was quite relieved that the creepy behaviour was gone and she actually acted like a human being right now. Sadly, that also brought up the very human flaws.  
“They are monsters! They convinced me to eat the damn fruit!”  
They already learned cursing, apparently. That seemed strangely appropriate if Eve had not just called them monsters. Lucifer tried to explain everything in a calm tone.  
“You were in a state of ignorance. We wanted to free you from the restrictions laid on you. Now you will be able to think for yourselves. I have a realm where you could stay and be safe until you are able to take care of yourself.”  
“No! No! You are evil! You made us betray God! You are monsters! Father! God! Please help us!”  
Dean grabbed Lucifer and pulled him away. They wouldn’t listen to reason and if God showed up he might hurt Lucifer. And in that moment it all became clear. There was a reason why Lucifer hated humans and he saw it clear in Lucifer’s disappointed and even somewhat hurt expression. It didn’t even seem like hurt pride. Dean understood it now. Lucifer had saved humanity from the creepiest mental disorder ever, from not knowing anything, and instead of a thanks or some kind of appreciation he was branded as an evil monster, the Prince of Lies, the embodiment of evil itself.  
“Let’s go, Lucifer. They won’t ever get it.”  
It felt like some kind of defeat but Dean would be damned if he let Lucifer get killed by God because he tried to explain to two idiots that he hadn’t meant any harm and had given them countless opportunities. Lucifer looked at him and brought them to Hell.  
“Why do they not understand? Why do you understand?”  
“Lucifer, I’m from the future, remember? Things change. Besides, I told you that I’ve never been a fan of the big guy.”  
Lucifer seemed to relax a bit at that but Dean felt even worse. Was it worth it? Was doing this worth having Lucifer become the eternal bad guy? Was it worth making Lucifer hate humanity? At least Lucifer knew that he was on his side. That realization hit Dean hard. Yes, with the way it went Dean was on Lucifer’s side in this case. He still had no idea if it was their past or not but he definitely would see their devil in a different light (if it was another).  
“Thank you, Dean. I would not have any hope for humanity if I had not met you.”  
Dean grinned at Lucifer. The fallen angels had watched their conversation and one of them laughed.  
“Well, Lucifer, it seems like you found your own treasure.”  
It was such a teasing and familiar tone. Dean turned to look at the fallen angel that spoke up.  
“Mammon! You interrupted them!”  
Another new voice. At least Dean recognized the familiar faces from Belial and Moloch. The others were still nameless to him but he really wanted to get to know them now.  
“How many are you?”  
“I have never counted, to be honest. It is not the number of them but their character and determination.”  
Dean liked that. Lucifer wasn’t bragging with the size of their group but their traits. The angels he fought with did seem content and also apparently looked up to him.  
“I do not want to interrupt your… staring… but what should we do now?”  
“We’ve always gone with ‘work with what we have’.”  
It shocked Dean when the fallen angels seemed to approve. They even seemed to think that Dean was smart. It wasn’t that unexpected when the only humans to compare him to only just learned that they were individuals. They had every reason to be condescending but they weren’t. On the contrary, somehow they really made him feel like he was one of them and not some weak human and descendant of the assholes they met earlier. Mammon spoke up again.  
“Dean is right! We have our own realm here. At the moment there is absolutely no way to defeat the father, so recovering heaven would mean go back to kneel and apologize and beg. That would be the most disgusting thing. We would have to pretend to love and suffer servitude. No, we have here a realm that belongs to us, where we can be free and form it to our will. Why would we want to go back when we can make ourselves our own kind of heaven out of Hell.”  
Dean found himself cheering along with the others at Mammon’s words. He could say that he had just been swept under by the excitement of the others but he knew that wasn’t entirely true. It was exciting in itself to see them gain hope again. Out of the corner of his eye Dean saw Lucifer smiling at him.  
“It is decided then. We will build our empire in this realm and make it our Heaven. They will envy the dark light of our kingdom. We will reign here in Hell while the others submit to the tyranny of heaven.”  
Lucifer turned to Dean.  
“Will you aid us?”  
Dean grinned at him and nodded. Then he turned to the others.  
“You can count on me.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another chapter finished. I hope you all enjoy it.
> 
> Thanks again to everyone who reads this fanfiction.


	6. Community

After that they started working on Hell to make their own paradise. It wouldn’t be perfect but they all agreed that perfection wasn’t something they wanted. Perfect would be boring, predictable, and remind the fallen angels too much of the heaven they left behind. The only thing it needed to be was just right for them. Dean wasn’t even nearly as strong and powerful as those fallen angels but he helped wherever he could. While he was working he got to know the rest of the fallen angels too. He even became friends with the main ones.  
Belial was every bit the sweet talker he had seemed at first. He was very witty too. That entire attitude seemed to come from his wish to be liked. When Dean told him that it wasn’t necessary because he was already a very likable guy Belial hugged him. Seriously, straight up hugged him. The fallen angel had become fond of him from then on. Dean could watch with fascination as he talked in a way that would make him able to sell anything to anyone. Once after he watched Belial talk another fallen angel into something Dean asked him how he did it. Belial was more than happy to teach Dean and he was more than surprised that it was actually interesting. He made no secret out of the fact that he was one of the people who found school incredibly boring and somehow Belial manged to bring life into a topic that he would probably have absolutely ignored in school.   
Moloch was a forceful guy, brash, but also a pretty funny guy. He and Dean loved play-fighting. Dean hadn’t expected that he would learn something new too. Moloch, for all his rash decisions and general temperament, was an amazing fighter. He was also the first angel in general who made a joke that Dean understood. He too surprised Dean when he slipped on a stone and fell. Moloch was instantly by his side and helped.   
Mammon was a collector at heart. He definitely had a thing for shiny stuff and finding treasures. He was so proud of his collection of gold and diamonds and other things like that. When Dean told him that he would definitely like the future Mammon got excited. He also took an interest in Dean’s necklace but he backed off immediately when Dean explained that it’s a treasure for him. Dean also listen to him talk about trading and that had been another thing he wished he had listened to in school. He understood so many things so much better now.  
Beelzebub had seemed jealous of Dean at first. As Lucifer’s right hand man he thought Dean was intent on stealing his position. That had come with a lot of problems. Dean had no idea what he had done to prove to him that he didn’t want to push him away. He just came up to Dean and they talked it out. Beelzebub actually seemed pretty disappointed when one reasons turned out to be that Dean’s stay likely wasn’t forever.   
Those were the main four that he really thought of as his friends, even though he liked all the others too and it were far more than it first seemed. Lucifer was a special case. Dean wanted to say that they were friends but Lucifer liked to treat him like he was some kind of porcelain thing. He seemed so incredibly shocked when Dean slipped, as if he would fall apart any moment now. It puzzled Dean because he had never acted like that. He asked Moloch about it and the other just laughed.  
“You really do not realize it? Dean, are you walking through Hell with your eyes closed?”  
That only puzzled him more. The smirks from Belial and Beelzebub confused him even more but they absolutely refused to explain it to him, which Dean found incredibly unfair. The others just seemed so incredibly amused and Dean didn’t get it. The big consensus between all of them was just to talk to Lucifer about it. Problem was, Lucifer seemed to change the topic every time Dean tried to talk about it. Dean had no idea why Lucifer was doing it.   
It took them a while to finish making the best out of Hell but it paid off. It looked nothing like the terrible place Dean had experienced back when he had died. The thought almost shocked him because it seemed so far away now. Dean had been suffering nightmares of Hell ever since he got back but while he still had to sleep (which the fallen angels found pretty strange) he hadn’t had a single nightmare since he arrived here. That had Dean very confused because being back in the place where everything happened should actually have made his nightmares stronger. Then again he had a lot fallen angels there with him who seemed intent on making him as comfortable as possible.   
“Why do you plan on leaving?”  
Dean was brought out of his thoughts by Belial’s question. He looked at the fallen angel who seemed to be especially fond of him. The other had obviously heard his talk with Belial.  
“I’m not planning to leave but I know that heaven’s angels aren’t the biggest fans of time problems, which I am and you know it. Sadly they’ve got more than enough ways to force me back into my time. Don’t worry though, as soon as I’ back I’ll make sure to find you.”  
Belial seemed really moved by his words and Dean had the urge to hug the guy but he wouldn’t.  
“Besides, I’ve got a brother I need to take care of. You all know that feeling.”  
“I understand. We all will miss you once the time comes.”  
Dean decided that he could throw out his ego and hug Belial because he’d really become his best friend of the angels besides Lucifer. He let the fallen angel hold him until he let go. Moloch chuckled as he joined them.   
“Did I miss some kind of cuddle session?”  
“Are you making fun of me just because I do not want Dean to leave?”  
“Dean will leave?”  
“Sooner or later your daddy’s going to force me to go.”  
“Then we will fight him.”  
Dean rolled his eyes and smacked Moloch’s shoulder lightly.   
“Spare your energy. I’ve got my brother I need to take care of. I promise that I’ll find you again.”  
A happy little banter began between them, ending in a play-fight with a lot of laughing and rolling around. Dean found out that even fallen angels could be ticklish. At least the rather depressing air from talking about him leaving was gone. They could always worry about that later. For now they should enjoy it.   
“Dean? Could we talk for a moment?”  
Their play-fight stopped and they all looked up and spotted Lucifer standing not too far away. Dean stood up and threw a playful glare at Moloch when he nudged him and raised an eyebrow.   
“I know what you’re thinking, you pervert.”  
Moloch laughed and Belial joined in. Those fuckers. Dean stuck out his tongue at them and walked away with Lucifer. He was incredibly curious what Lucifer wanted to talk about.  
“You called for me?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am officially celebrating 50 Kudos! Thank you so much to everyone!  
> I would have never thought that my little passion work would be liked by so many people!
> 
> An especially big thanks to those who left comments!
> 
> I hope you had fun with this chapter and I hope that I will continue to entertain you!


	7. Connect and Disconnect

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter will have some Ducifer in it. Be prepared! (And also be prepared for my not that great romance writing.)  
> Romance will not be the main focus in this story, just so you know. (Most of you probably guessed that already.)
> 
> Also, this is the last chapter playing in the past. 
> 
> I hope yo enjoy it!

They stopped a bit away from the others but Dean could still feel their curious gazes. He also had a feeling that he would be questioned by them as soon as he joined them again. To be honestly, he himself was curious too. Lucifer wasn't someone who was easy to read. He could sometimes have reactions that were obvious but other times there was no way to tell what was going on in his mind. Dean had a feeling that Sam would say the same about him.   
"I wanted to talk to you."  
"Yeah, I got that."  
Dean couldn't help teasing Lucifer a bit about that sentence. He meant it in good humour but Lucifer wasn't laughing like usual. Was something bothering him?   
"Did I do something wrong?"  
"No! No, not at all."  
Would that guy ever stop speaking in riddles? He was a mystery in many ways and Dean was getting more and more curious how to unravel him.   
Lucifer was moving closer and Dean stiffened. His heartbeat sped up and he stiffened. That was strange, he wasn't afraid of Lucifer. Why would he? Lucifer had more than enough chances to kill him and he had been incredibly friendly to Dean. What was it if it wasn't fear? Dean didn't swing that way, right? For once Dean actually wasn't sure about that anymore.   
It was silent again and Dean didn't know what to do. Lucifer just seemed to gradually move closer and closer.   
"You did not do anything wrong, Dean. On the contrary, you have done a lot of good for me and for all of us. You have become invaluable and irreplaceable for us, for me."  
Dean did not know what to say. Lucifer, the one all the other fallen angels confided in and trusted to make the right decision, just basically told him that he was part of the club. He would have never thought that he would be proud to be accepted by a group of fallen angels. Officially.   
„For you?”  
That was another thing that Dean noticed. Lucifer had talked about himself especially. He had no idea what that could mean. Why did Lucifer think of him as that important? Not even because of some mission he was assigned, not because of some purpose he was chosen to have, and not because they were dependent on each other. None of that could be the reason, so why?   
For a moment Lucifer was silent again and Dean wasn’t sure if he would get an answer. Then he received his answer and barely had time to note that apparently angels knew the concept of kissing. He probably should have had some kind of panic reaction, like denying that he was swinging that way or questioning how this was happening at all.  
There was also the surprise that it was so incredibly gentle. Dean couldn’t deny that he was absolutely on board with this. He reciprocated once his second of shock passed.   
Suddenly it hit him what the others had been trying to tell him all this time. Thinking back on it he should have seen it coming when Lucifer and him just became closer and closer. He should have realised what those long stretches of silence had really meant.   
Dean let out an amused huff. He really was oblivious when it came to emotional stuff. Lucifer pulled back and raised an eyebrow at him.  
“You’ll laugh but I had no idea what was going on until now.”  
Lucifer did indeed laugh at that comment.  
“And now that you realised it?”  
“I’m asking myself how I was that stupid.”  
They both were laughing now and Dean appreciated that. It was kind of an honour to be the one to make Lucifer laugh. He was so serious at times and had an intellectual level that Dean wouldn’t even hope to reach.   
“But yeah, now that it’s happened I’ve realised that I feel the same way about you.”  
Lucifer seemed to be absolutely delighted about that.   
As soon as they got back Dean had to tell Moloch and Belial what happened. He would have never thought that millennia old fallen angels could react like teenage girls. It was endearing and annoying at the same time. Belial was especially happy and was probably already planning some kind of wedding. Dean wouldn’t put it behind him. No one Dean had ever met had as much fantasy as Belial had. Moloch was really happy too but he acted (just a bit) more mature than Belial.   
It wasn’t like a lot of things changed after that but there were some subtle touches and kisses. According to the others they weren’t that subtle but at least Lucifer wasn’t going all out in front of them. That would’ve become embarrassing very quickly.   
“Okay, how the fuck did you know about this before me?”  
Dean still couldn’t get over the fact that everyone was teasing him about it before he had any idea what was going on.   
“You have a lot of similarities.”  
“What kind of similarities?”  
Belial was of course quick to answer.   
“The issues with your respective fathers, the caring but at times prideful attitude, the-“  
“Okay, okay, I get it. I don’t wanna hear you tell me about my whole character, Dr. Freud.”  
“Who?”  
“Forget it.”  
Belial laughed at that.  
“You have to tell me about all these strange ‘references’ you make sometimes.”  
“That’s something I’m going to do once we’ve found each other again in the future.”  
Dean knew that he was making Belial excited for the future but that was exactly his intention. In the case that this was their past and not some alternate one he would make sure that the fallen angels would remember him when he would inevitably be pulled back to the present.  
Moloch was more interested in fighting styles and weapons of the future but Dean could tell him even more about that than about the rest. They could sit together for who knew how long just talking about stuff like that. Lucifer always interrupted when they were taking too long.   
Here in Hell Dean had no idea how much time had passed since he had been thrown here but he guessed that by now he must have been staying there for several months.   
Dean was going about his day, this time chatting with Mammon and Beelzebub, when a portal opened. At least it looked like one with its blue border. He instantly turned around and walked the other way. Not yet. He didn’t want to go yet. Dean wasn’t ready. There was so much he could still learn and for once learning was fun.   
The portal seemed to be following him. Dean was getting annoyed. No, he didn’t want to go.   
“Lucifer!”  
Dean called out for him because he was slowing starting to panic. He was running through Hell now but it didn’t seem to keep the portal from closing in on him. Lucifer arrived just when the portal reached Dean.   
Both of them shouted a loud ‘No!’ at the same time but it was just one moment too late for Lucifer to save him.   
Landing hard on his ass Dean looked around, finding himself in Bobby’s house with Sam and Cas looking down at him with worry. Fuck!


	8. Taking Chances

There was a very long moment of silence. Dean was staring at the spot where the portal had been. It had vanished instantly. He didn’t feel good about being back. While it was nice seeing Sam again it felt like so much had changed. It all felt a bit uncomfortable to him.  
“We did it!”  
It was Sam who eventually broke the silence. Dean flinched a bit at the shout, having been far too much lost in thought to expect the outburst. He was also instantly wrapped up in a hug from Sam. That was nice at least. Dean hugged him back but pulled back soon.  
“How long was I gone?”  
“About two weeks.”  
Dean stared at Sam. There was no way that it had only been two weeks. Time had gone by quickly, he had to admit that, but it had to have been a few months at least, if not a year. He didn’t say anything against it though. There was no reason to talk about it.  
“So, did you find out where I was thrown?”  
This time Cas was the one who spoke up, seemingly standing further back. Dean wondered if the others had known Cas before they fell, if Cas had been part of the war in heaven. He definitely saw Cas in a whole new light now.  
“The past. If it was our version of the past or not is unclear.”  
Dean nodded. Still no confirmation if there was a chance of meeting them again. He grimaced a bit and stood up.  
“Well, what did I miss?”  
“They’ve been continuing to break seals. So far we’ve not managed to stopped them from breaking another.”  
“Okay then, let’s get some research done.”  
He walked up to the bookshelf and grabbed himself a book with the right topic. There was no time to lose, especially when he wanted to find out if it were the same angels he had gotten to know or if he really had been in an alternative past. When he turned back around both Sam and Cas were staring at him.  
“What?”  
“Dude, did you just say you’re going to research and you picked up a book? What happened to you?”  
“We’ve got work to do and you’re questioning why I’m taking this seriously?”  
“May I just state that you picked up a book written in Enochian, Dean?”  
Cas’s words made Dean freeze and look at the book again. Oh. Apparently whatever Lucifer did when they first met wasn’t only limited to speaking and understanding. That was actually pretty badass. Thinking about Lucifer lowered his mood instantly. He missed him already.  
“So what?”  
It probably wasn’t the wisest action to get defensive but Dean didn’t want to talk about what happened. He would have to admit to a few things that wouldn’t really sit well with Sam and Cas.  
“You don’t know enochian, Dean.”  
Dean rolled his eyes at Sam’s words. He laid the book down and glared at his brother.  
“Can we stop talking about unimportant shit and focus on the important stuff?”  
“Yeah, go ahead and try to read the book, jerk.”  
“Bitch.”  
At least some things stayed the same. They both laughed and Dean rolled his eyes at his brother. The uncomfortable feeling faded a bit.  
“But seriously, how did you learn enochian?”  
“Let me deal with what happened in the past first and then I’ll tell you everything.”  
This way Sam got some information at the least. Otherwise he wouldn’t leave that alone at all. He knew how curious his little brother was. At least Sam nodded and accepted his excuse but he could basically see the theories forming in Sam’s mind. Cas on the other hand just seemed more confused than ever before.  
Dean just ignored it and sat down with the book in his hand. Sam grabbed himself another book and sat down too. Cas vanished for the moment. Dean felt a little more relaxed once he was gone. He needed to settle before he could deal with how things with Cas might change. Lost in the texts in the book something else occurred to him.  
“Where’s Bobby?”  
“He’s on a hunt. Should be back later.”  
“Alright then.”  
That would get him a break until Bobby would start questioning him. Because that would definitely happen. Bobby wasn’t that easily satisfied with a ‘I’ll tell you later’.  
The book didn’t give that many answers. It were mostly the things they knew. There were 666 seals in total, 66 (at least) of which must be broken, 2 of them determined, the first and the last. Dean hadn’t known though that once Lucifer was free the remaining seals wouldn’t open on their own but would remain closed forever. That was new.  
The implications that it held only registered when Dean read the names of some of the seals:  
The Witnesses (Already happened)  
The Seal of Moloch  
The Seal of Belial  
The Seal of Mammon  
The Seal of Beelzebub  
It continued like that. Dean was staring at the book with wide eyes. That meant that the other fallen angels were locked away too with their own seals and if they weren’t freed before the last seal was broken they would never get out. If this ended before they were free then they would be locked up forever. He didn’t even know if those angels were the same ones that he had gotten to know. What should he do?  
Dean grabbed book after book, earning strange looks from Sam. He found information about the ‘seals of the fallen’ as they were called. His plan was incredibly risky but Dean had to do it. He had to get one of them released. If the one he freed was the same one he knew then he would start working on freeing the others, if he wasn’t then Dean would confess what was going on and take care of his mess. Next thing was that he couldn’t tell Sam yet because that wouldn’t go over well.  
“I’ll go get some food. Want something, Sammy?”  
“Just the usual.”  
“You and your rabbit food.”  
Sam flipped him off and Dean laughed as he walked out with a piece of paper that had the instructions on how to break the seal that held Moloch. It was the first one on the list and Dean was far too eager to find out to think too much about what he was doing. He was already on his way to break the seal himself when he stopped. Nope, he couldn’t do that. If Sammy found out that Dean had intentionally broken a seal then he might as well lock himself into the panic room because that was where he would end up after taking an involuntary bath in holy water.  
How would he go about it then?  
Dean grimaced when he got an idea. He didn’t like his own idea but that way he could at least have a way to have his experiment without the others thinking he was absolutely crazy. After he got the food Dean drove somewhere else, finding himself a secluded spot and (after taking his time to celebrate having his baby back) he set everything up and then sighed to himself. He really hoped that it would pay off and Moloch should damn well appreciate what he was doing for him. It went against every fibre of his being to do this but he was determined that since there was a chance that it might be his friends trapped behind those seals it was worth it. Dean finished the ritual and glared at the demon that appeared.  
“Wow, I would’ve never thought that you would want to see me one day.”  
“Shut up, Meg, and listen.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When I uploaded the last chapter I woke up to three comments on it. Thank you all so much!  
> You're motivating me so much! (And also a big thanks to my second greatest motivation: procrastination)
> 
> Also, with that chapter I've reached 10 000 words, making it the longest fic I've ever written. 
> 
> As always I hope you're enjoying the chapter and the story in general :)


	9. Timing

Meg seemed surprised at Dean‘s rather impatient tone. It wasn’t the usual ‘you’re a demon, you’re evil’ tone, it was more of a ‘I’m in a hurry so you’re gonna listen and I’m gonna talk’ tone. He himself was very aware that he was impatient. That wasn’t something he wanted to think about though. He wanted to get this over with because Meg still wasn’t anywhere near his favourite person but he would rather cut off his legs with a dull rusty knife than talk to Ruby about it.  
“What do you want?”  
Apparently Meg was just as impatient as him now that she realised that he wasn’t going to kill her. Dean really had no intention to but that didn’t make this talk any more pleasant.  
“From what I know you’re helping to start the apocalypse, right?”  
“Yeah, we’re gonna free our Father. You won’t be able to stop us.”  
“I’m not trying to. Not yet.”  
While Meg was now looking at him like he grew a second head Dean thought about what his relationship to Lucifer meant. Was he some kind of Father-in-law now? He tried so hard not to laugh at that thought. He would totally make Meg call him daddy and watch her choke on the word.  
“Then what do you want?”  
Dean just held the piece of paper out together with a letter for Moloch that he very intentionally wrote in Enochian because he was sure that Meg would try to read it. She took the two pieces reluctantly and looked at them. Her eyes widened.  
“That’s the instruction for a seal.”  
“Exactly.”  
“You’re giving me the manual on how to break a seal?”  
“Yep.”  
“Why? I’m sure you want something in turn.”  
“Yeah, actually, I want you to never tell anyone who gave you that.”  
Meg looked absolutely dumbstruck at that. Dean was serious. He really wanted nothing more than to keep her mouth shut about who gave her that information.  
“You’re sure about that?”  
Dean gave her his very own version of bitchface.  
“Do you really think I would’ve gone through all that just to give you that ritual if I wasn’t sure? Seriously, the only thing I want you to do is to be silent about who gave you this. Especially Ruby. Got it?”  
“What’s your problem with Ruby?”  
“Oh come on, we both know that she’s manipulating Sam.”  
“Dean, honey, it seems that you’re smarter than you look.”  
“Not the topic. Do I need to make a deal with you to ensure that you’re not gonna tell her or anyone else?”  
“No, I definitely don’t want to kiss you. You’ve got my word. I won’t tell anyone that you’re a traitor.”  
Dean got angry at that and Meg actually took a step back. He could be intimidating if he wanted.  
“You’ve got the instructions.” He broke the devil’s trap. “Now fuck off.”  
Meg was gone in a moment but her words stuck with Dean. Traitor. Yeah, in a way he was. They should be trying to keep the seals from breaking not break the seals themselves. He would have a hard time explaining that he broke the seal to see if it was his friend trapped behind it. And that he was starting to doubt if the whole thing really was that black and white. Scratch that, he definitely stopped believing in a black and white world. He already had doubts before but after his time in the past he was completely sure that things weren’t even nearly as clear cut as the angels represented it.  
Dean sighed to himself and drove back with the food. He came back in time with Bobby and there was another big scene with hugs and questions how he was doing, also multiple uses of the word idjit. Typical, normal, comfortable. That was just perfect to help him calm down from the encounter with Meg.  
As time passed he got nervous though. He knew what he was planning and he felt even more like he was betraying his family. It was such a bad feeling but he had to know if his friends were the ones that were trapped.  
Bobby managed to distract him with his constant questions about where he had been and what had happened. It took hours until he accepted that Dean would open up about everything once he felt ready because he definitely wasn’t ready yet.  
Dean waited patiently until Sam and Bobby had gone to bed. He grabbed a bag and took a deep breath, sneaking out of the house. It was dark out, getting close to midnight. Dean was halfway to the forest when he heard something and froze.  
“My grace is gone.”  
“What?”  
How did Cas manage to sneak up on him every time? Dean took deep steadying breaths and thought about something to say. It had taken him a moment to realise that Cas was talking about the handprint on his shoulder that was gone now.  
“Something happened to you.”  
“No shit, Cas, I was thrown all across the timeline.”  
“There was something else too.”  
Dean wished that he could shield his thoughts right now because Cas always looked like he was about to take Dean apart and read everything he had ever thought.  
“Could we maybe not talk about it now?”  
“There is something you are keeping from us.”  
Dean appreciated that Cas didn’t seem to be reading his mind. Thankfully. He didn’t want Cas to be the first one to know, especially since he was on the side of things that would easily kill Dean if they found out. Cas wasn’t that kind of type but it still had Dean nervous.  
“Cas, really, I’m fine. It was just some strange time stuff, I’m sure.”  
Cas still looked like he wasn’t believing him. Either it were his angel senses or Dean was just a generally bad liar. Either way, he didn’t want to continue this conversation, especially since he had a promise to keep.  
“Where are you going?”  
“To a bar. I need a time out.”  
“May I go with you?”  
“Another time, Cas. I wanna relax and play some pool and maybe hook up with a nice barlady.”  
Total lie but he didn’t care right now. He didn’t want to continue this and he didn’t want to have Cas clinging to him today. It would be far too hard to get rid of him. Cas seemed surprised that Dean implied that he would like him to come with him another time. That apparently made him drop it and he vanished.  
“A good bye or see you later would be nice.”  
Dean grumbled to himself as he walked further into the forest. He was questioning his sanity with every step. There was a big chance that he would die now. There was also the chance that Meg didn’t believe him and didn’t break the seal in which case he would personally make sure to kill her. He looked up at the moon. They should have finished breaking the seal by now.  
He kneeled down and drew Lucifer’s sigil in the dirt. Another thing he had learned. A way to mark meeting spots. Dean took a few steps back and waited for the clock on the nearby church to strike midnight. Nearly at the same time as the bell started to announce that it was midnight a figure appeared at the sigil.  
Moloch looked different now. It made sense. But Dean never failed to recognize him. He just had a way of holding himself that screamed fighter. He also held himself just as confident as he remembered. Dean was sure. That was his friend. Thank fuck he didn’t make a mistake.  
“It’s been a while.”  
The words made Moloch look directly at him and his face was nearly split by his wide grin.  
“Dean!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First three and on the last chapter I woke up to five comments!  
> I'm so incredibly happy!
> 
> I hope you all continue to enjoy this story!


	10. Moral Ambiguity

Just like that Dean was wrapped up in a big hug. Moloch had him tight in his grp but Dean wasn’t about to pull back. Instead he hugged Moloch in turn.   
“You’ve got no idea how much I missed you.”  
“Really? And I thought I was the one waiting for centuries behind a seal.”  
Dean laughed and pulled back, grinning at Moloch.   
“These centuries didn’t seem to change you at all.”  
Moloch huffed. “Why would they? I have never been known to be anything but stubborn.”  
They both were laughing now and Dean felt right at home again. He had missed that so much. It wasn’t the same as hanging out with Sam and Bobby. It really wasn’t.   
“And you managed to get your way every single time except when Belial was up against you.”  
“Belial and his way with words. Did you free him yet?”  
“Nope, you’re my first try. I wanted to be sure that it’s really you.”  
Moloch chuckled at that. Dean grinned at him.  
“But I’ve got to ask for your help. There are a lot of seals that need to be broken before they get Lucifer out. Otherwise they’re going to be locked in forever.”  
“That is a hard task but I will help you. I too want to free our friends.”  
Dean smiled at Moloch and grabbed his bag, taking out a phone.  
“We need to stay in contact.”  
He showed Moloch the phone and explained how it worked. Moloch was absolutely fascinated by it. He looked like he wanted to play with it for hours.   
“But can I not stay with you?”  
“Not yet. My brother and uncle are still on ‘shoot anything that isn’t human’. We also get visits from an angel pretty often. He’s a nice guy but you know…”  
“I understand, Dean, do not worry. But if you do not call me sometimes I will, as you say ‘kick your ass’.”  
Dean laughed at that.   
“Don’t worry, I’ll call you and visit you and help you free the others.”  
Moloch grinned at Dean and hugged him once more.   
“I will see you later then.”  
He was gone a moment later and Dean smiled to himself. After he quickly wiped away the sigil with his foot he grabbed his bag and returned back to Bobby’s house.   
“So I’ve heard Moloch already visited you.”  
Dean turned around and looked at whoever had spoken up.   
“Don’t think we’re friends now just because I’m working on getting my real friends out of their seals.”  
Meg stepped in his way, blocking him from returning. Dean groaned. He had tried to get away without her pestering him even more.   
“They’ve been locked away long before you were even born, Deano. How are you friends with them?”  
“That’s none of your business, Meg.”  
“Aw, come on. Aren’t we on the same side now?”  
That wasn’t what Dean wanted to hear. He absolutely didn’t want to work with demons. Nothing that happened changed his opinion of demons. Especially since everything that happened brought up the question of what happened to the Hell that they built up after the fallen angels were locked away. If it was demons who had ruined all that and made it the dungeon it is today Dean would personally hunt the demons responsible for that.   
“No, we’re not. I just want my friends back.”  
Meg didn’t look deterred by that even in the slightest and Dean was seriously thinking about pulling out the holy water.  
“Still counts as the same side to me. I’ll do you a friendship favour and tell you something. Ruby is giving Sam her blood to kill Lilith-“  
“Already know that.” Dean interrupted.  
“Because Lilith’s death is the last seal, the one that frees Lucifer.”  
That took Dean off guard. He hadn’t expected that one. Another thing he absolutely didn’t need. The situation was getting even more tense.  
“There’s got to be another way to get Lucifer out!”  
Meg seemed surprised at first at Dean’s outburst but she caught himself pretty quickly.  
“So you really want to get Father out.”  
“That’s not what I’m talking about. Isn’t there another way to kill her?”  
“You know what? I’ll do some research for you but only because you’re helping.”  
Dean rolled his eyes at her but he had to admit that it was nice of her.  
“Thanks, I appreciate that.”  
It was hard to admit that, especially since he was still in doubt about Meg. He didn’t see any reason she would have to lie about that though. She had risked giving Dean the way to stop the whole apocalypse.   
Meg was gone before Dean could say anything else. He wondered if Meg was as reluctant with this as he was. After all, they had their fair share of encounter where they tried to kill each other. He definitely wouldn’t apologize for that and he knew that Meg wouldn’t either.   
Back at the house he sneaked into the bedroom and went to bed.   
The following days he did his best to distract Sam from doing anything in regards to finding Lilith. He get them on hunt after hunt, driving out for anything, even the most simplest things were better than to deal with Lilith. Bobby might have been eyeing him strangely but he didn’t say anything yet. Dean knew that a confrontation was inevitable. The same thing was with Cas. He continued staring at Dean’s shoulder. It made Dean incredibly uncomfortable. There was no way he would talk about it though. Sam was pretty much the only one who didn’t seem to notice that Dean was acting strangely. Either that or he decided to completely ignore it. Ruby was now even more suspicious of him, which was pretty good proof that Meg kept her word and didn’t tell anyone about it. Meg didn’t visit but Dean often talked with Moloch over the phone. He seemed to be making good progress, thankfully. If this continued then they would manage to get everyone out before it was Lucifer’s turn to get out.  
While Dean was firm in his decision he was still mentally dealing with the fact that he was helping to start the apocalypse. After all, he should have been the one to stop it. He should have been the one dealing with the demons and angels that were breaking the seals. But he wanted to get Lucifer out. He was missing him so much, at least the Lucifer he had known. That was another big worry. Was Lucifer even still the same person he had met. Millennia in a cage could change someone.  
Dean sighed deeply and continued working on his car. It was hard to focus on anything. He was still lost in his thoughts, weighing his options and arguing with himself about if it was really right what he was doing. That question was harder to deal with than any nightmares of Hell, which honestly made him far more angry than terrified after his journey to the past.   
"You did not come to see me so I had to come here."  
The sudden presence of someone else made Dean jump and he hit his head.   
“Damn!”  
“Already am, anything else that I need to know?”  
That smartass reply could only come from one fallen angel. Dean pushed himself out from under the car and stood up, grinning at the figure before him.  
“Belial!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again I want to thank everyone for their comments, kudos, and even hits. I'm completely overwhelmed that my story gets that much attention.
> 
> Another good thing: Chapter 11 is halfwaay done so it might come sooner than even I myself expected :D


	11. Tearing

Again he was pulled into a hug, just as strong as Moloch’s, but he was used to that and hugged Belial back. Belial definitely deserved it, especially after all that time behind the seal. For someone as social as Belial it had to have been worse than Hell could ever have been.   
"I missed you so much, you sweet talker."  
Belial laughed.  
"I missed you too. It was not the same in Hell without you."  
"It hasn't been the same without you either. But hey, I got to use the skills you taught me."  
That seemed to make Belial really happy and he grinned widely. Dean was glad to see Belial that cheerful, even after being sealed away for so long.   
"Did Moloch get the others too?"  
"He recovered everyone who was behind a seal. We do not know where the others are."  
Dean nodded. At least now none of them would be sealed away forever. He smiled at Belial.   
What happened then went by too fast for Dean to follow it. One moment they were chatting along happily and suddenly the tip of a blade was sticking out of Belial's chest. A blinding light followed and Belial dropped to the ground.  
For a moment Dean stood there with wide eyes and then dropped to his knees.  
"Belial! Belial! No, please. BELIAL!"  
Tears started streaming down his eyes and he was sobbing. It felt like back then when Sam had died with one big difference. There was no way to bring Belial back. No deal, no sacrifice could bring him back.   
In one moment Dean went from sadness to red hot fury. He stood again and looked at whoever dared to kill his friend. It was Cas. That was the next shock but it didn't stop Dean from being absolutely furious.   
"What the fuck, Cas? Why? You..."  
"Dean, he was..."  
"I don't care what you think he was! I swear, if I get my hands on an angel blade I'll gank you like the monster you are!"  
Tears were still coming and Dean punched Cas. It only hurt him but Cas still looked like he had been hit.   
"But I..."  
"No! I don't wanna hear it and I don't want anything to do with you ever again! Look for another righteous man. Now fuck off!"  
Cas did vanish and Dean bit his lip, looking down at Belial's body. He grit his teeth and tried not to start sobbing again. If he didn't keep it together he wouldn't be able to do anything. Dean took a deep breath and dried his tears. He gently picked up the body and sighed, absolutely not looking forward to telling the others what happened. Belial had always been the one to talk, had always been the one who had known what to say. Dean had no idea what to say. He carried Belial's body to the car and drove to where the fallen angels where staying. Moloch opened him.  
"Hello Dean, what-"  
The whole room fell into silence when they saw the body Dean was carrying. The light atmosphere was gone.   
"He was killed by an angel."  
"Who?" Beelzebub seemed to be more on the side of furious than sad but even Dean could see that he was close to tears. "Who did that?"  
"Castiel."  
Dean would've never thought that he'd say that name with that much anger and disgust in his tone. Belial had done nothing, he had just been chatting with Dean and now...  
The others seemed just as much stuck between mourning and anger.   
Belial had always said that he'd known he was with Lucifer when he realised how false the whole 'love' of heaven was. He wanted to have people who genuinely liked him, not pretended to because they all should 'love' each other. Looking around the sad and angry faces Dean looked at the body he was carrying and smiled slightly.  
"You did it, Belial. You've found people who genuinely like you."  
Moloch tried to calm the others down but he was obviously distraught too. Dean decided to step in.   
"Let's give Belial a worthy good bye."  
Dean had never done a hunter's funeral for someone who hadn't been human but Belial deserved it. He told the angels about it and they all agreed. That was the first time that Dean really realised just why the funerals were for the living. They all stood around the pyre that Dean made with great care. Moloch stood incredibly close to Dean and he seemed to be desperately trying to hold back tears. Dean reached over and rested his hand on Moloch's shoulder. The fallen angel took a deep breath.  
"I loved him, Dean."  
That came unexpected. Dean knew from Lucifer that it was possible though and it only made the pain of Belial's loss worse. He pulled Moloch into a hug and while all angels had genuinely been sad this was the first time that Dean witnessed one of them really crying and sobbing. It was awful. Belial had been a dear friend to all of them but Moloch had to face the most pain.   
"And I'm sure he loved you too."  
Dean knew that there was nothing that could make Moloch feel better now but he was trying. He didn't want to see his friend suffer that much.   
Around them the other fallen angels started singing in enochian. It was a tragically melancholic melody. Moloch seemed to try and join in but didn’t get out a single word. Dean had the feeling that this was something new for the angels. Not the singing in itself but the singing in the connection with what could be called a funeral. A final goodbye to a good and dear friend.   
Noone moved until the fire had gone out on its own but the songs had died down sooner than that. In the end even the sound of the fire died down and only glimmering ember, reminiscent of that in Hell, was left on the ground between them. None of the angels were willing to break the silence and neither was Dean. Moloch was still standing very close to him. He needed the comfort right now and Dean wouldn’t even think about pulling away. Especially since he was still shaken too.   
One after one the fallen angels walked up to Moloch and tried their best to comfort him. Beelzebub and Mammon were at the front.   
After a while Dean and Moloch were the only ones left around the fires because it had started to rain. None of the others asked them to move inside with them because they knew that Moloch would not be back to his old self for a while and they all understood. It seemed like Dean had been the only one taken by surprise by the revelation that Moloch had loved Belial.   
“Thank you, Dean, that you did that for him.”  
“No need to thank me. He was my friend too.”  
Another moment of silence followed. Neither of them cared about getting wet. It was pouring down by now but it almost seemed as if time stopped for a while. Now if only he could turn the time back to when Belial had been still alive and safe him.   
“Dean?”  
“Yes?”  
“Do not leave me.”  
“I won’t.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just for clarification: I don't hate Cas and I'm not planning on making him some kind of bad guy.
> 
> On a lighter note, my little story has reached 100 kudos and I'm incredibly grateful for that!


	12. Friendship

Dean decided to take Moloch on a hunting trip. It wouldn’t be the perfect solution but Moloch was a fighter at heart so it might take his mind off what happened for a while. He called Sam that he would be away for a few days. Sammy started questioning him. Apparently Castiel had turned up and told them that Dean might have changed sides. Dean grit his teeth but tried not to get angry again. He needed to be calm now so he could help Moloch deal with it.   
“Just ignore him, Sammy. He’s done enough damage already.”  
The only kind of positive thing about what happened was that Dean’s inner conflict was gone. He had no reservations anymore about freeing Lucifer. The only problem was that the demon blood would do a lot of damage on Sam. He still hoped that they could find another way. Meg still hadn’t called, which meant that she had found nothing so far. Dean didn’t want to give up hope though.   
Sam wanted to know what Dean meant by Castiel having done enough damage already. Dean just said that he’d tell him when he got back to Bobby’s. It should be in a few days. At least that was Dean’s estimation. If they took a bit longer it wouldn’t be a problem. Meg was watching Ruby for him. He really couldn’t believe how much he was trusting Meg with this. Either way, his friend was more important right now than thinking about why he trusted a demon.  
He also talked with the other fallen angels about it, letting them know what he was planning. The others approved. All of them. Beelzebub even offered to come with them. Dean thanked him but said that he could use that time because Moloch definitely didn’t want to seem weak to them.  
“Why would Moloch want to avoid that?” Beelzebub asked him.   
“To be weak is to be miserable. He doesn’t want to admit that he’s miserable at the moment.”  
“Did you just quote Lucifer at me?”  
“Hey! It’s not like he isn’t right.”  
Beelzebub smiled at him, half understanding and half of it teasing. Dean could already hear the teasing he would get when he and Moloch would come back. He couldn’t be angry about it though. It was all in good humour and Dean himself new that Lucifer had gotten incredibly far under his skin. He couldn’t wait until he had him back. Hopefully Lucifer felt the same way.   
After everything was cleared Dean dragged Moloch to the car and drove away from the hideout of the fallen angels. He had found signs of a vampire nest next to a small town not all that far away.   
It was kind of funny to check into a motel room with a fallen angel but when had Dean’s life ever been normal. He put their things away and sighed when he saw Moloch’s expression.  
“Don’t hang your head like that.”   
Dean nudged Moloch a bit.   
“What do humans do for pain relief?”  
“For physical pain we take painkillers for emotional pain we take alcohol and drugs.”  
“Could we get some of that alcohol?”  
“Does that even work on angels?”  
“I assume that I will need a larger dose.”  
Dean nodded. They could move the hunting to the next day. If Moloch wanted to drown his sorrows Dean wouldn’t stop him and he didn’t think an angel could get alcohol poisoning. Maybe Moloch would even get more out of the hunting trip if he dulled the pain a bit.   
“I’ve seen a bar on the way here. Let’s test how long it’s gonna take you to get drunk.”  
He definitely hadn’t been prepared for that but he still went to the bar with Moloch. If he really was that resistant against alcohol Dean might just skip on the bill or use the fake credit card that he got the most out of.   
They walked into the bar and sat down, ordering drink after drink. Moloch was faster than him but Dean didn’t care. Some girls and even guys walked up to them and wanted to make a move on them but Dean just sent them all away. Moloch definitely wasn’t in the mood and Dean hadn’t been in the mood since he had been in the past.   
“And this bitter drink helps humans to deal with emotional pain. I do not see it.”  
“Just wait, Moloch, it’s probably gonna take a lot to get you drunk.”  
They sat there for hours and Dean had the feeling that the alcohol was starting to work (and that he would have to change fake credit card after this). Moloch seemed to be lighting up a bit and they got to chatting about this and that. He told Dean about Beelzebub’s first try with a phone and Mammon dragging them from museum to museum. Everything seemed a lot lighter and happier than before. And in the moment Dean thought that a woman approached. Dean knew that kind and it wasn’t the one needed right now. Actually, that was the last thing they needed right now.  
“We’re not interested, thanks.”  
He wanted to make that clear. If she thought she could land either of them despite having that silver ring on her finger she was definitely wrong. Apparently she was interested in Moloch because Dean’s words didn’t make her drop it. No, she moved close to Moloch and tried her luck. Dean had a feeling that this wasn’t going to end well. Moloch already looked like he wanted her gone as far as possible.   
“Excuse me, I just lost someone dear to me. I do not want nor need the attention of another and especially not this soon.”   
“But why? The time’s just right now that that obstacle is gone.”  
Moloch seemed in shock at those words. Did she really say that? He looked like he was about to say something but before he could the woman had already landed on her ass with a red handprint on her cheek. It hadn’t even been Moloch, who looked quite shocked. No, standing over her with a furious expression was Dean, ready to shout at her how she got the stupid idea to make that comment. Sadly other guys stepped in, determined to teach Dean a lesson about how to treat women.   
Dean wanted to try and calm then down at first but then Moloch got up and stood by his side. Dean smirked at him.   
“Shall we have some fun?”  
“Definitely.”  
They stood back to back, ready to take on the whole bar. Which it would probably end up being since more and more of the guys in the bar gathered around them. Moloch and Dean just grinned at each other. They had only ever had the change to fight together in play fights but now they could put it to practice. The whole bar was surrounding them now and they were seriously outnumbered. Neither of them cared though.  
“Just a few more of them and it might become close to fair, right Dean?”  
“Meh, I think they’d need the guys from the next bar too.”  
With that the fight began. Moloch seemed like he was enjoying himself and Dean couldn’t have found a better way to cheer Moloch up if he had tried.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, that was a long break in between chapters...
> 
> I hope you all had great holidays! 
> 
> This is probably the last chapter for this year.


	13. Unsealed

Dean and Moloch left the bar laughing. It had started rather seriously but they both had ended up having fun with it. They left quickly before anyone could call the police though. Getting arrested would definitely kill the mood again and Dean had just managed to bring Moloch’s mood up again. Seeing Moloch smile again was worth the bruises he would definitely find from that fight.  
They still went to hunt those vampires and Moloch seemed to be doing far better now. The few days they spent together were great fun and Dean was hesitant to part from Moloch again. It had been nice to spend time with his friend but he knew that the other fallen angels would take care of him.   
Back at the place where the fallen angels were staying Beelzebub greeted them, glad to see that Moloch had gotten a bit better. His mood seemed to have gone down again though, the moment he looked around the room and saw everyone but Belial. Dean was about to announce that he would stay a bit longer when Beelzebub and Mammon walked up to him and talked to him to distract him. It made Dean smile. They were friends, true friends and not in the way heaven’s ‘family’ worked.   
On the drive back to Bobby’s place Dean got a call and picked up.   
“Deano, didn’t think you would pick up if I called.”  
“Meg, that nickname’s stupid. Anything you want to tell me or are you just calling to annoy me?”  
“Straight to the point then. I’ve done all the research I could but there’s no other option. Sam has to kill her.”  
“Fuck. And there’s nothing I can do?”  
“No but I found something that you can use to cleanse out the blood after that.”  
“What? Really?”  
“Yeah, some kind of ritual.”  
Dean sighed in relief. He could do something for Sam after that. It wouldn’t be permanent damage to Sammy.   
“Thanks for that, Meg, really.”  
“There’s something else.”  
“What?”  
“You’re both chosen as angel boxes.”  
“What the fuck are you talking about?”  
“Vessels. Angels need those too. You’re Michael’s sword, nice euphemism for angel condom. Sam’s chosen for Lucifer.”  
“Oh fuck.”  
Just when he thought that things were looking up. But Lucifer hadn’t seemed like he needed a vessel in Hell. Maybe there was an exception to that. Please let there be an exception to that! Dean couldn’t let Lucifer take Sam as a vessel. That wouldn’t be good for either relationship…  
“Doesn’t look good right now.”  
“No shit, Sherlock. Thanks for the help though.”  
“No worries, Deano. Always happy to help the big boss’s favourite.”  
Dean rolled his eyes and hung up. He knew more now than before but the whole thing wasn’t getting easier. Now he had to deal with Sam and Bobby’s questions. That was the least fun part of this. They were already waiting for him, he was sure, but how could he explain everything to them? If he told them the truth they’d react badly, he was sure. He also didn’t want to lie to them. So what should he do? He couldn’t just be silent forever. Sam and Bobby were probably getting suspicious enough already.   
Back at Bobby’s Dean parked his car. He took a moment to get himself together because there was no way that this would be easy.   
Inside Bobby’s house he could already hear voiced. Bobby, Sam, and… Ruby… No matter if they had one common goal right now Dean still absolutely hated her and there was no way that he would ever like her. She was intentionally deceiving Sam from the beginning and even lied to him about so many things. He would’ve had so much satisfaction telling Sam that she was working with Lilith the whole time but she’d be denying it and he had a feeling that he would believe her more than him at the moment. It was partly his own fault because he was acting like that. Seriously, how could he tell Sam about it though, especially without seeming like he had gone completely crazy.  
“Hey guys! I’m back!”  
Bobby and Sam seemed really happy to see him while Ruby was obviously annoyed. Sam went up to hug him. Dean hugged him back.  
“Sammy, you’re acting like I was gone for months.”  
“Could we get to the point now? I just told Sam that I have found Lilith.”  
Of course Ruby had to interrupt that moment. She was the most annoying demon Dean had ever met, by far. Now he had to try and deal with this without telling Sammy because he’d be damned if he told Sammy in front of her. Bobby was trying to mediate.  
“Dean, it could really help us if you’d just let Sam do his thing. He’d be helpful.”  
“Yeah, I know.”  
“You should… What?”  
“I know. There’s no other way. I believe in you, Sammy. You can do this.”  
And Dean felt like shit for saying that but he promised himself that he would explain everything later. It was a poor excuse but he absolutely didn’t want to have that discussion right now. Besides, if he told them the truth Sam wouldn’t go and confront Lilith. It was awful to know that he was basically lying to Sam just by completely leaving out the facts.   
All three of the others were looking at him strangely. It seemed to surprise Ruby the most. No wonder, she knew what killing Lilith really meant. She would probably get really excited soon and Sam would get a big dose of demon blood. Okay, he reminded himself, completely okay. There was a way to cleanse it.   
Just like that he was pulled into another hug.  
“Thanks, that means a lot to me.”  
Could Sam not make it even harder for him? Dean didn’t need the guilt right now. He didn’t need that nagging voice in his head telling him that he was betraying his brother. It was for Lucifer. He was doing this to see Lucifer again. Angels wanted to have a price fight, demons wanted Hell on earth, he just wanted Lucifer back.   
Sam left with Ruby soon after that. Dean didn’t have a quiet minute since then. He was pacing around, making Bobby worry about him but too lost in his thoughts to answer his question. What was he doing? He should be the one Sam could rely on most. He shouldn’t be the one knowing much more and not telling him just because he was afraid that Sam wouldn’t listen or worse, think he was completely insane.   
“Damn it! I need to go!”  
He was out the door before Bobby could say anything. Dean was in his car in a moment and drove away. On the way he called Meg for the exact location. What kind of awful idea had it been to just let Sam go into this without knowing what would really happen? He thanked Meg for the info and parked in front of the convent. Dean stormed in. He had to tell Sam what was going on. Of course there were demons trying to stop him, he’d expected that. The moment he burst in through the door he noticed that it was too late. Sam was standing over Lilith’s vessel and the ground began to shake.   
“Oh shit.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy new year everyone!
> 
> I finally got the time for a new chapter again. I hope you enjoy it!


	14. Truth

Sam turned around and looked at him, surprised to see that he had followed him.   
“What are you doing here?”  
“Listen, Sammy, it’s-“  
Dean was interrupted by Ruby and her gloating about how genius she is and how great Sam was and honestly, Dean wasn’t even listening. He really didn’t care about how great she thought she was or how great he was and how Lucifer would reward them. Dean couldn’t hold back the eyeroll at that. He felt like a jealous teenager thinking it but she didn’t know Lucifer at all.   
Sammy was the one to kill her but Dean gladly helped. That bitch needed to go. With Ruby dead Dean wanted to finally come clear about what’s going on. Again he was interrupted.  
This time is was a bright light building up more and more. It was also really loud. Dean had to hold his ears so he wouldn’t get deaf. He was about to yell to Sam to get out when they were suddenly on a plane.   
“What the fuck?”  
At the same time the plane got into turbulences. So much for telling Sammy the truth right now. There was no way that he would get it out while the plane was trying to avoid the pillar of light. Dean couldn’t help but look out and ask himself if he had really made the right decision. It was far too late to take it back though and he also didn’t really want to. The light meant that Lucifer was free and if everything went right he would see him again soon. Hopefully at least.   
Then it slowly got through to him that they were on a plane and he was clinging to the armrests.   
Finally, after what felt like days to Dean, they were on the ground again and he took a deep breath. That wasn’t a pleasant experience! Not at all! Maybe his stomach was also protesting because he knew that he had to tell Sam the truth about what happened.  
“Sammy…”  
“Yeah?”  
“About Lilith being the last seal.”  
“If you’re going to say I told you I’m going to punch you.”  
“Know, I wasn’t gonna say that. Sammy… I knew.”  
Suddenly it was silent. It almost seemed like the whole world around them was silent for a moment. Sam was staring at him. That was the most uncomfortable moment ever. He had no idea what would happen until Sam’s speechless surprise became anger.  
“What? You sent me with Ruby to kill Lilith even though you knew that it would free Lucifer? Seriously? What the fuck, Dean?”  
“Look-“  
“I mean, I was sure that I could correct your mistake and-“  
“Wait, my mistake?”  
“You broke the first seal!”  
“You try getting through decades of torture and see how you’re doing!”  
“You could’ve warned me about Ruby!”  
“It’s not like you would’ve listened if I did!”  
“I would’ve listened!”  
“Just like you listened to me the first time I told you she was bad news!”  
“Could you stop bringing that up?”  
“It’s not even the topic!”  
“Oh yeah right! The topic is you letting me run right into Ruby’s trap! And that despite knowing what killing Lilith meant!”  
“There’s a reason for that!”  
“Yeah, the reason is that you want to play high and moral again. The perfect one. You can remind me how much I did wrong!”  
“No! That wasn’t what I wanted at all!”  
“I don’t care! You know what? Cas was right! It sounds like you’re changing sides”  
Dean actually didn’t know what he should say to that. It wasn’t even really that wrong. Actually, it was pretty spot on. He hadn’t exactly been on the side of heaven but it had taken his trip to the past to really go against them. So really, it was more finally choosing a side instead of changing sides.   
Apparently his silence was enough of an answer because Sam seemed to get even more angry.   
“You know what? Maybe you should take a break. I’ll go back to Bobby’s alone.”  
“What? No!”  
“Yes, you need to think about what the fuck you’re doing.”  
“I know exactly what I’m doing!”  
“That just makes it worse, Dean!”  
That hadn’t gone well at all. Dean shouldn’t have told Sam that he knew.  
“There’s a reason for that, Sam.”  
“I don’t want to hear it. I’m going to Bobby’s.”  
Dean had to watch Sam leave him alone at the airport. That had hurt. He had really wanted to explain it to Sam but in the end he shut him down. Then again, it was his fault. He should’ve just told Sam what was going on from the beginning. He sighed and pulled out his phone.   
“Hey Beelzebub, can you pick me up?”  
“Of course. Where are you?”  
He told Beelzebub which airport he was at. Beelzebub told him that he could be there in half an hour.   
“45 minutes. You know that speed limits exist, right?”  
“Who cares about speed limits? I am a fallen angel.”  
That made Dean chuckle and his mood lightened just a little bit.   
“You can’t just ignore the laws because you’re a fallen angel.”  
“Oh yes, I can.”  
“Just get here, you criminal.”  
It was all in good humour. It still impressed Dean how quickly Beelzebub had adjusted to technology. He had learned driving three days after Moloch had gotten him out of the seal and he had been using a phone well enough to have discovered social media and to grasp the concept of selfies and how to send them. Dean’s phone memory would probably be used up soon.   
Okay, he had half an hour to kill (because Beelzebub definitely wouldn’t keep to the speed limits). At least he had a way to get away from the airport and didn’t have to take a bus or steal a car.   
Dean tried calling Sam several times but he never picked up and after five tries it didn’t even ring anymore. Sam must have turned off his phone. Nice. He would have to wait a few days before he could try to talk to Sam again, if not more. Right now Sam was incredibly pissed off at him, so he needed some time to cool down again. Hopefully then they could really put this shit to rest and move on from it.   
Beelzebub didn’t even take half an hour. He was there at around twenty minutes and from the satisfied grin on his face Dean guessed that there was a lot of rubber on the streets now.   
“Didn’t I tell you about speed limits?”  
“Be silent and get inside.”  
He laughed and got into the passenger seat next to Beelzebub. Thankfully he hadn’t eaten yet or this drive might end up in a dirty car with Beelzebub’s driving style.  
“What happened? I thought you were with your brother?”  
Dean sighed. He had expected that question to come up, so he told Beelzebub’s about everything. He wasn’t entirely happy talking about it but it was still better than keeping it in. Beelzebub huffed.  
“You should have told him beforehand.”  
“Yeah, I should’ve. I wish I would’ve had that realisation sooner.”  
“I understand. I hope you two will get over it soon.”  
“Thanks, I hope so too. By the way, do you mind if I crash with you guys for a bit at least?”  
Beelzebub laughed at the question.  
“We would never mind is you stay with us but you should know that.”  
Dean smiled at him but then clung to the door handle when Beelzebub drove into a sharp turn with a far too high speed. By all means, they should have ended up beside the road a while ago but apparently Beelzebub knew what he was doing because they were still driving. Barely twenty minutes of heart attacks later they arrived at the place and Dean left the car quickly.   
“Dude, one day you’re gonna kill me.”  
“I think you are not that easily killed.”  
They laughed as they walked in and Dean looked around at the others.   
“Hey guys!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Procrastination is my strongest motivation!  
> Just kidding, my biggest motivation is seeing how many people enjoy my work.  
> But procrastination helps


	15. Bad fortune

Sam was still angry when he arrived at Bobby’s. He couldn’t believe that Dean kept a secret from him that lead to him freeing Lucifer. It made him doubt if whatever came back from wherever was Dean. He sat down with Bobby and told him everything that happened. Bobby was shocked too. He hadn’t expected it either. It wasn’t like Dean to go against hunter principles and what he had done was pretty much against everything they stood for.   
“I just don’t know if we can trust him at the moment, Bobby.”  
“Sam, I really don’t think Dean just did that without reason.”  
“Think about it. He knowingly let me free Lucifer. The fucking devil is walking on earth because of Dean.”  
“Calm down, damn it! There’s gotta be a reason for it. Did you test if he was possessed?”  
“No but his tattoo was okay. You saw it. There was no way that he could’ve been possessed.”  
Bobby seemed to think about it. They both had no clue about what they should be doing now. They couldn’t just let Dean come back before they knew what was going on with him. Now it was only the two of them anymore. Hopefully only for now. They would get Dean back to normal.   
They researched until late at night and then Sam went to bed.   
He didn’t wake up in his bed at Bobby’s. Around him everything looked desolated. Rusted cars were lying all over the place, grown over with plants and abandoned. The whole area looked like no one had been there for a while. He wasn’t sure where he even was. It was a park in some kind of city, which looked just as desolate as the park. What the fuck was even going on?   
Sam walked through the streets, trash was all over the place. What happened?   
Suddenly shots rang through the air. Sam followed the sound but on the way he saw something else. On the wall, not even a block away from the shots, something was written. It were red capital letters and Sam knew that word all too well.  
CROATOAN  
“Oh fuck!”  
No need to check out the shots. Sam turned around and ran in the other direction. There was no way that he would risk getting into a fight with croats, especially since he had absolutely no weapons with him. Finally he made it out of the town. There were no croats to be seen. Walking along the streets wasn’t the best idea but in a place that he didn’t recognize it was better than going away from the roads and potentially getting lost in that place that was apparently full of demon virus zombies that kill every living thing in their sight.   
As he walked along and pondered where he could be and how he could find a safe place to stay without getting killed he heard cars. Thankfully! Croats were unable to drive! That meant that he was finally going to face some real people. He waved from the side of the road and saw the cars approaching and they really did slow down. Sam sighed in relief and walked closer to the cars.   
“Hey, I just landed here and I don’t know where I am. Could you help me?”  
Instead of a reply someone got out and a moment later Sam felt a hit on his head and blacked out.   
When he woke up again he was chained to a chair in what looked like a cabin. There were guns all over the room and other things generally used for hunting. It looked just like the ones they used. Then again, it might be. His thoughts were interrupted by someone entering. It was… himself?  
“What the fuck?”  
“That’s what I wanted to ask. Who sent you? What kind of awful trick is that? Tell me!”  
“I don’t know what you’re talking about! I just woke up in this area! I’m you.”  
“Prove it.”  
It took some really embarrassing fact sharing to finally convince himself that it really was him. Facts not even Dean could know. Then he finally was untied and his other self decided to show him around. There were people he knew, or at least one of them. Chuck was there, acting his usual strange self. There was one woman called Risa and other people that had apparently come together. They all looked like they had spent years fighting for their life.   
Their whole camp was in a seemingly safe area, surrounded by fences made big enough that no one could climb over them. It was also far away from the city.   
“How many cities are infected?” Sam asked his counterpart.  
“All of them. Worldwide.”  
That was a horrible thing to imagine. How could that happen? They should have protected the people from that. It had been their responsibility to stop the apocalypse. Now they apparently had to survive through it. Sam was still afraid to ask what happened. After all, he knew now that part of it was his fault. Mostly. And partly it was Dean’s fault. As he thought of Dean he wondered where he was. Surely he would be here with them in the camp and help them fight off Lucifer. And Cas! Where was Cas? There was no way that they weren’t there. Maybe they were on another supply run right now. After all, they needed all the food that they could get.   
He helped them around the camp, asking himself how he could get back home. Whoever or rather what threw him here into what he guessed was the future, he had no idea but right now he had to deal with it. At the very least he was 5 years in a future but there was no way of knowing if it was the future. If it wasn’t then he could relax but if it was then they were in deep shit.   
Chuck had just been rambling about toilet paper to him when he noticed that a few hours had passed and Dean and Cas still hadn’t arrived at the camp. Hopefully they hadn’t gotten hurt. The croats could be pretty aggressive. More hours passed and still there was neither Dean nor Cas coming back. He got a bed in one of the cabins, which was more than he had expected with their very limited supplies. His other self apparently took care of himself. Okay, this was starting to give him a headache.   
In the morning he got up and still didn’t see either Dean or Cas. He was starting to get afraid of the answer but he had to find out, especially with their fear about Dean changing sides. That wouldn’t explain Cas’s absence though.   
Sam found his future self and pulled him aside for a moment. He ignored the bitchface he got. Why would he even bitchface at himself? Sam nearly chuckled because he was using Dean’s term. Yes, he was interrupting him in his daily preparation but he wanted to know what was going on.   
“I haven’t seen Cas yet.”  
“He isn’t here.”  
“Why?”  
“We don’t exactly know. The angels said he was a traitor. I guess Lucifer got him on his side.”  
That was a hard hit. Sam wouldn’t have thought that any angel would change their mind and help Lucifer. Well, there had been Uriel so it might just make sense and that was a scary concept.   
“And what about Dean? Don’t tell me he died!”  
“No, he didn’t die.”  
“Then what’s going on?”  
“He is Lucifer’s general.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We have Sam's POV for once. I hope you're still enjoying it.   
> Only one more chapter and we'll be going back to Dean, promise.


	16. Many Streets

Sam was frozen for a moment. Please someone tell him that he misheard. Please someone tell him that his future counterpart hasn’t just confirmed his fear that his brother really did change sides. It made him panic.  
“You didn’t know that already?”  
“I had a sneaking suspicion that something was going on but I didn’t want to believe it.”  
“You better believe it because then you can react to it. If I had seen it sooner we would not be here.”  
This conversation already had him feeling sick. He didn’t want to believe it, he didn’t want to face this future. Why had this happened to him?  
“We’ll be launching an attack. We know where they will turn up next.”  
“What?”  
He must be coming across as incredibly dumb to his future self but it was extremely hard to deal with what was going on. He was tempted to just curl up somewhere and never come out again. How could he believe that his brother was fighting for Lucifer?  
“We have to end now what we couldn’t end before. It would all be easier if Dean was on our side.”  
That was obvious. Nothing could be more difficult than doing this without Dean. Even worse, doing it against Dean.  
“How did this happen?”  
“You know how it started. Dean’s absence, his falling out with Cas.”  
“Did he ever tell us why he was so angry at Cas?”  
“I never asked.”  
“What? I thought we talked it out with him.”  
Future Sam shook his head.  
“We never talked with him again after what happened at the airport.”  
Sam looked at his other self in shock. Why did they never talk again? How could he have done that to Dean? They might have had their fair share of fights but never has one of them stopped talking for years. Of course he had felt betrayed by Dean and he still would like an explanation but ignore him? That just didn’t sound like himself. Someone must have done something to make him ignore Dean like that. Dean had listened when he had explained the thing with Ruby, even though he hadn’t been happy about it but he let him explain. Also, Dean had been right in the end. Ruby had done nothing more than use him for her goal.  
“Why?”  
“Because he betrayed us.”  
“Shouldn’t we want to know why?”  
Somehow this version of him seemed less and less like himself. Either the years that had passed changed him so much that he was kind of a different man or there was something foul about this. Whatever the reason was Sam would not let them go out there alone. He had to see with his own eyes what his older self had said. Hopefully he wouldn’t and it would all just be a prank. That wouldn’t make sense though. After all, his future self absolutely didn’t expect him to arrive.  
“I’ll go with you and fight with you.”  
Because there was no other choice for him. Maybe he could help his older version and the others. There was always a way and Sam was determined to get to the way that wouldn’t cost so many people their life.  
Sam helped them pack everything, every weapon in the book. They had prepared meticulously. He didn’t expect anything else from himself. If anything he could plan out an attack. But then again, no matter how this future Dean was he knew Sam better than anyone. Or at least, that’s what Sam assumed because Dean had always known him best. They could be running straight into a trap.  
In the car he turned to Chuck because it continued to bother him.  
“I know about Dean now but where is Cas? Did you ever see what happened?”  
Chuck shook his head, looking at the road with a sad expression.  
“I haven’t had any visions for years now. All we know is that he vanished and then all the angels aid that he was a traitor. The angels told Sam to kill his brother but he refused, well, you refused. But Cas? We never saw him again.”  
Sam felt sick to his stomach at that. Of course he would refuse to kill his brother. He would never do that. Nothing would ever make him kill his brother.  
The closer they got to the area the more nervous Sam felt. He didn’t want to face the future. No, one of the possible futures. He would continue to refuse to think that there was only one way. The area looked even more abandoned than the rest. It was silent and not in the normal way. The tension was rising in all of them as they grabbed their weapons. There was no way left but forward.  
“We part here. You are going to be the distraction. My old me and I will go over there. Try not to die.”  
The others nodded and they parted. Sam watched after them.  
“They will die.”  
He had to say it. There was no way that this wasn’t an absolute suicide mission.  
“They know.”  
“Oh, that makes it better.” Sam replied sarcastically. How the fuck had he become such an asshole?  
His future self just rolled his eyes at him and continued on. Sam had no idea what the plan was except for guns blazing and trying whatever they could not to let this end that way. If that was the end then it had to be the worst ending ever.  
Both he and his future self moved further, trying not to draw attention to themselves. In the background the shots of a fight echoed through the area and Sam was sure that the fight on the distraction front was already in full force.  
“You didn’t really think you’d fool me, Sammy, right? You can’t think I’m that stupid.”  
Sam turned around, startled. He took deep breaths to steady himself. There was Dean, standing right in front of him with a grin that reminded him of more carefree times. It was incredible how much relaxed Dean seemed to be. The situation was completely different though.  
“Oh, you’ve done the same thing I did in a different direction. You’re obviously not the same Sam who’s facing Lucifer right now.”  
“Dean, what happened to you?”  
“Now you’re asking? Isn’t that a bit too late? I tried to call you a thousand times after the fight at the airport.”  
“I’m sorry, okay? I was afraid of you changing sides.”  
Dean chuckled. “I did. Lucifer and I are pretty close now and we’ve been close ever since I got thrown back in time.”  
Sam got nervous. Another confirmation of what his future self said. He didn’t want to hear it. He didn’t want to accept the fact that his brother was fighting for the devil.  
“Why?”  
“Don’t pretend to care. You’ve left me and refused to talk to me for years now. Well, now I don’t care anymore.”  
A scream rang through the air. Sam jumped and ran towards the sound where Lucifer had just killed his older self. Sam stared down at him in horror. Dean stepped up behind him and seemed completely unmoved by what he was seeing. That was the next horrifying sight.  
Lucifer smiled almost solemnly at him and Sam felt like the air was being pulled out of his lungs.  
“You know, Dean is mine. He has been mine ever since he was thrown back in time. There is no way to change that. No matter what you try, no matter how many aspects you change, this one is set in stone.”  
“No!” Sam shouted.  
“Yes.” Dean stated from behind him and when he turned around Dean’s eyes were black.  
The next moment he woke up in his bed at Bobby’s. He was breathing heavily and the shock was still sitting deep.  
He ran down the stairs as soon as he could form a consistent thought again. Bobby looked at him with an obviously surprised expression.  
“What’s going on, Sam?”  
“I need to call Dean!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that was the end. 
> 
> At least of my version of the end.
> 
> Next Chapter we'll be going back to Dean.  
> I hope you enjoyed it!


	17. Reconnect

Dean was still with the fallen angels. As soon as they learned how to play cards it started to turn into a tournament. They were so excited to learn and Dean felt bad for having absolutely no focus. He stilled wished that he could talk to Sam. He wasn't really in the right mindset for it but he was glad that he could make his friends happy. While the others were getting competitive about all the games humans played Dean was deep in thought. It went far enough that Beelzebub won easily against him. Okay, he had really played well but Dean hadn't had the right focus to really challenge him. He always had to think about Sam and how different this would've gone if he had just told him the truth. Maybe Sam really would have listened. And then he probably would have just dismissed him because people just were like that.   
Then suddenly his phone rang and Dean checked it. Sam! Thank fuck!  
“Sammy!”  
He was so incredibly relieved that Sam had called him. It felt like he hadn’t talked to Sam in such a long time when really it had barely been a day. It seemed so much longer because of Sam’s silence.   
“Dean!”  
Damn was it good to hear Sam’s voice. Dean had seriously feared that Sam wouldn’t want to talk to him again.   
“Dean, where are you?”  
“I’m just hanging out with friends.”  
“You have friends?”  
“I’ve got plenty of friends, Bitch.”  
“Shut up, Jerk. You know what I mean. You’ve got to introduce me to them.”  
“I’ll do that, Sammy, I promise.”  
The fallen angels all seemed happy to hear that Sam had called him. They probably knew how Dean had felt. Sadly their brothers never decided to talk to them again.   
“Alright, you said that you wanted to explain what happened. Let’s meet up. I’ll hear you out.”  
“That’s great, Sammy. Let’s meet at Ellen’s tomorrow. I’ve still got to teach my friends how to play pool.”  
“You’re not going to show them how to hustle, right?”  
“Maybe.”  
“You’re corrupting them!”  
Dean and Sam were laughing at the same time at that. Finally they could laugh together again, though Dean was also laughing at the thought of him corrupting some fallen angels. Yeah, that made sense.   
“You’re gonna like them if you give them a chance.”  
“Of course I’ll give them a chance. They’re your friends.”  
“Thanks, Sammy, I appreciate it.”  
“Just don’t teach them any illegal stuff.”  
“You’re no fun.”  
“Anyway, I’ll see you tomorrow.”  
Dean could hear the eyeroll through the phone. He chuckled a bit.   
“See you tomorrow, Sammy.”  
Sam hung up and Dean sighed in relief. His brother wasn’t going to ignore him. Beelzebub next to him patted his shoulder.   
“See, it worked out in the end. Your bond with your brother is strong.”  
Dean smiled at Beelzebub’s words.   
“Let’s get back to playing cards. I’m gonna have my revenge for you beating be last round.”  
They laughed and sat down again. It was comfortable and everyone seemed content. Beelzebub was still far too good at basically all the card games they tried out. It was unfair how good Beelzebub’s pokerface was. Noone had a chance against him.   
After hours they switched to pool. Beelzebub was talented but no one could beat Moloch. Dean had never seen such precise shots before.   
“Dude, I gotta take you hustling one day. You’re amazing!”  
Moloch seemed incredibly proud of himself and Dean was glad to see him get better. Of course he had to still be hurting but it had gotten a lot better at least.   
“I would gladly go with you.”  
Dean grinned at Moloch and no matter how much he tried Moloch beat him every time. He just had such precise shots that not even Dean could compete. He wouldn’t be a sore loser though because Moloch had definitely deserved that victory. Okay, those victories, because Dean hadn’t been able to give up, so they played game after game. The others seemed very amused about that.   
After the 20th or so game Mammon laughed at Dean.   
“Give it up. You have been thoroughly beaten.”  
Dean rolled his eyes at him.   
“Yeah, yeah. You’re just jealous because I’m actually giving him a challenge.”  
He had to find a game for Mammon. Maybe Sam would have an idea if he asked him and once he had accepted that Dean’s best friends were fallen angels. Then again, that would probably be far easier than the explanation as to why he wanted Lucifer to go free and just what his relationship with Lucifer was. He really wasn’t looking forward to that conversation. It had to happen, he knew that, but that didn’t mean that he wouldn’t absolutely hate it when that moment would come.   
“What are you thinking about?”  
Dean startled a bit when Beelzebub asked that. He had apparently been far too lost in his thoughts to notice that he had just shot the white ball into a hole.   
“Just thought about how I’ll tell Sam about Lucifer and me.”  
Beelzebub smirked and nudged Dean.   
“Will you describe to him what you want to do with Lucifer?”  
Dean smacked his shoulder playfully.   
“I’ve got the feeling that my brother won’t want to hear about that.”  
“We would like to hear about it.”  
He chuckled and rolled his eyes at their teasing. They weren’t that different from humans in a lot of situations.   
“I’m not gonna say anything and you can’t make me!”  
Just like that the fallen angels were closing in on him. Dean chuckled.   
“Oh, don’t you dare, you feathered dicks!”  
They were closing in further when suddenly there was a knock on the door. They all froze. Noone should know that they were here. Officially that had been an abandoned building and they made sure that it stayed that way. Whoever was out there must have somehow found them. It also couldn’t be Meg because she learned to call before she came in when Moloch nearly killed her because she just appeared in the room.   
The fallen angels were getting into position and Beelzebub gave Dean an angelblade so he could fight too, just in case whoever stood there would try to kill them. Beelzebub wanted to go to the door but Dean stepped ahead of him. Everyone was incredibly tense. Every moment someone could burst in but it didn’t seem like it.   
Dean took a deep breath and grabbed the handle. He opened the door quickly and was about to attack when he realised who was standing there. His mood immediately went down and he glared at the visitor.  
“Castiel.”  
Saying that name immediately announced to everyone just who exactly was standing there. It was the angel that killed Belial. Just like that the mood changed from nervous to angry.   
Moloch was the one to move first. He tried to attack Castiel but he was held back by Beelzebub.   
“Let me go! I want to kill him. I want to get revenge!”  
Dean could slap Castiel just for turning up here and reminding Moloch of what had happened. Just when they had thought that he was starting to recover. Castiel seemed baffled at seeing the tears in Moloch’s eyes, as if he had had no idea that fallen angels had emotions before that moment. Dean very nearly punched Castiel in that moment and if Castiel hadn’t spoken up then he might have done it.   
“I have come to apologize.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all so much for the comments and the kudos. I appreciate it so much. I know I said it before but I can't say it enough. 
> 
> Also, I'm thinking about making a tumblr to my AO3... What do you guys think about it?


	18. Overcoming

„Apologize?“  
Now that was something Dean hadn’t expected. Out of all the possible scenarios Castiel apologizing wasn’t one he had thought possible. He had seen Castiel try to justify his behaviour but really apologize…   
“I do not care about apologies! Let me kill him! He deserves to die!”  
Moloch was struggling against Beelzebub’s hold. Mammon rested his hand on Moloch’s shoulder. They all felt for him. He was hurting more than everyone else. No apology could ever bring him back what he had lost. But still…  
“Belial died because Castiel did not give him a chance. Do you really want to go back to heaven’s way?”  
Dean was surprised when Beelzebub said that. It was kind of a low blow, considering everything that heaven had done to them. Moloch looked at him in shock.  
“How can you say that? He killed Belial! Why would I not want revenge? How is that heaven’s way?”  
“Because they in heaven were not listening when we tried to talk.”  
Castiel looked over at Moloch and seemed incredibly confused. It appeared that he hadn’t expected that strong of an emotional reaction. Dean could understand that much. He had also been confused back when he had first met the fallen angels because he had only ever met the stoic unemotional angels like Castiel was. Something must have changed after Lucifer and the others had been locked away, something to change the angels that had remained in heaven on such an extreme level that there was a stark contrast between normal angels and the fallen ones.   
“Dean, why is this fallen angel so angry?”  
For a moment Dean wanted to shout at Castiel and tell him how stupid he was but then he realized that Castiel had no idea about these things. It was so strange.   
“Moloch loved Belial. You know, the kind of love you see between couples. And when you kill someone like that the other part of the couple hurts more than everyone else.”  
Castiel seemed to get it, which surprised Dean because it had probably been the worst description he had ever give. Explaining concepts that seemed completely obvious to normal people was damn hard.   
Then Castiel approached Moloch and the whole room tensed. Even Moloch froze in Beelzebub’s grip, unable to believe that Castiel dared to approach him. Dean was about to step in but Beelzebub looked at him and shook his head. He was there to step in if it went wrong so Castiel would not be able to hurt Moloch. No one was moving except for Castiel. He stopped in front of Belial.  
Dean very nearly broke the silence when Castiel got down on one knee and a lowered head because of all the things that could have happened, that was not one Dean expected.  
“I apologize, Moloch. I know it will not bring your loved one back but I sincerely thought that I was protecting Dean. I acted before assessing the situation and there is no excuse for that. Just know that I regret my mistake.”  
The others seemed just as baffled as Dean was. They apparently hadn’t expected it to go that way either. From what Dean could see Beelzebub had readied his angel blade already so he had expected an attack. Moloch caused the next surprise because he didn’t act out violently.   
“I cannot just forgive you. I cannot leave Belial’s death behind, especially not so soon. There is no way to say if I can ever forgive you. That said, I accept your apology.”  
Dean looked just as baffled as the others and Castiel looked positively shocked. Apparently not even Castiel himself had expected that answer. Not the first bit, everyone knew that Moloch would take a long time before he would have at least processed Belial’s death fully, but that he accepted the apology.   
“Thank you. I appreciate that.”  
That scene was one Dean was sure he would never forget. He would say that he knew the fallen angels well but in that case he hadn’t expected that result. Moloch had surprised him and at the same time Dean was proud of him. They may have just gained Castiel as an ally because Moloch had given him a chance. It was also good because it gave Castiel a chance to get to know the fallen angels and maybe to understand them.   
“If you would like to stay here, Castiel, you are welcome.”  
The offer came from Beelzebub and Dean still couldn’t believe that he and the other fallen angels were so different from everything the stories told about them. No, he could believe it but it was still shocking how distorted the images in the legends were. Beelzebub, incredibly smart and ambitious, was shown as a deceiver. Moloch, excellent and honourable fighter, was shown as a savage and vicious beast. Mammon, collector and curious about everything, was shown as greedy. Dean shook those thoughts off. It was better to focus on current things than to lament on had already been done.   
“I would like to stay.”  
It was a nice moment. Dean felt relieved when the fallen angels decided that they would accept Castiel. Maybe they wouldn’t like him yet but Dean knew that Castiel’s innocence had some charm to it at least. At least that’s what Dean thought. He was pretty sure that the fallen angels would agree though. Castiel would also finally have someone who had the time to show him everything. Dean sighed. Despite everything that happened Dean hadn’t really been able to bring himself to hate Cas.   
Dean wanted to talk to them when his phone rang. It was Meg.   
“Hey Deano.”  
“You’re never gonna stop calling me that nickname, right?”  
“Now you finally got it. Anyway, I’ve got some news on Lucifer.”  
“Really? Let’s hear it!”  
Beelzebub looked at Dean with confusion and Dean mouthed ‘Lucifer’ to him with an excited expression. The fallen angel grinned at him while Castiel just looked incredibly confused.   
“Why is Dean so happy about this?”  
“He explained to you about Moloch and Belial, right? Well, Dean and Lucifer are the same.”  
Castiel was staring at Beelzebub in a way that made Dean laugh despite being on the phone with Meg. He thought he had seen Castiel confused before but that was a shocked expression Dean had never seen before. If Castiel was less stoic his jaw would have hit the floor, Dean was absolutely sure of that.  
“Are you still listening, Deano?”  
“Yeah, sorry, got distracted for a moment. What’s the deal?”  
“I don’t know why but it seems like he’s trying to summon death. We need to talk him out of it.”  
“Alright. We meet up tomorrow and get him before he can do something stupid. Hopefully he’s gonna listen to reason, even after all these millennia in the cage.”  
“Stop thinking so much about it. I’m sure he’ll be fine as soon as he sees your ass.”  
“Saved by the power of my ass.”  
He heard Meg laugh on the other and even the fallen angels in the background couldn’t hold back a chuckle.  
“Where’s he gonna be tomorrow?”  
“Carthage, Missouri.”  
“Gotcha, see you tomorrow.”  
As soon as he hung up his phone was ringing again. It was Sam.   
“Hey Sammy! What’s going on?”  
“We got the Colt and we know where to find Lucifer.”  
“Carthage, Missouri, am I right?”  
“How the fuck do you know that?”  
“I’ll tell you when we meet up. Is Bobby gonna come with you?”  
“Bobby, Ellen, and Jo.”  
“Alright then. We’ll meet there tomorrow around noon.”  
“I’ll tell them. See you there.”  
Dean hung up and cursed loudly. Everyone in the room was looking at him. He grinned sheepishly.  
“Ever explained to your family that you’re in love with the devil?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heya! I'm back again. Thank you so much for all the comments and kudos. 
> 
> Still not sure about the tumblr but if I decide to make one you'll find the link in the end notes of the next chapter.


	19. Laid Open

The next morning Dean packed his bag again and hugged his friends one after the other. He couldn’t bring himself to hug Castiel again but he patted his shoulder in a friendly way. They all were nervous, hoping that Lucifer was okay and himself. After all, it wasn’t at all typical for Lucifer to just move on without contacting them first. Dean just hoped that it was only because Lucifer was just assuming that they had been killed after what happened in the garden. He would have assumed that if he had been in Lucifer’s place, especially after being locked away for such a long time.  
“Alright, I’m ready. Wish me luck, guys.”  
He left Castiel with the angels because while it wouldn’t exactly be the best atmosphere Castiel insisted that he would do his best to make amends. For once Dean actually thought that Castiel would be able to do this on his own. In the meantime Dean had to deal with his family on his own. No one could help him with that and nothing could make it easier.   
It took a while until he arrived in Carthage. He looked around at the town that looked absolutely abandoned. The atmosphere was pressing down on his chest and he moved slowly. The silence was incredibly suspicious. It was just too unnatural.   
Suddenly there were the barks and howls of hellhounds and Dean jumped. He was ready for them to attack him but the attack never came. Something wasn’t right. He moved faster now, nearly running into the direction the howls and growls were coming from.   
He stopped when he saw the scene before him. Sam, Bobby, Ellen, and Jo were standing against the wall of a building, surrounded by the hellhounds. Meg was standing on the other side of the houns with a smirk. Why had Sam even brought Bobby? It was even more dangerous for him since he couldn’t even run!   
“Meg, what the fuck is this shit?”  
Everyone’s eyes turned to him and he felt uncomfortable but that wasn’t important. He was pissed that Meg was attacking his family. She could have just avoided them or just moved on.   
“Deano, I’ve been waiting for you.”  
“Shut up. I’m asking what the fuck you’re think you’re doing.”  
“They got in the way.”  
Was Meg seriously pouting? Dean could feel a headache coming from her attitude. She was always like that but it was even more annoying when he was trying to talk to his family about a serious topic. His family, who were currently staring at him as if he had suddenly grown a second head. Sam was about to say something.   
“No, Sammy, not now.”  
Dean would deal with it but one thing at a time. He was currently focusing on Meg and her absolutely stupid attack on is family because there had been much better possibilities to avoid a conflict but no, she just had to attack them with hellhounds and make the whole thing awkward on top of what already was going on. Too bad that punching a demon wouldn’t to anything at all.   
“Send your hellhounds away, Meg. Now.”  
“You’re no fun, Deano.”  
“I wouldn’t call chasing my family around with hellhounds fun.”  
“Okay, okay, fine. Heel boys, we’re moving on.”  
“Thanks. Give them something else to eat.”  
Meg flipped him off and Dean rolled his eyes at her. He couldn’t believe that a demon that old could be that childish.   
“By the way, father will turn up soon so you and your gang should get going.”  
“Got it.”  
Dean watched Meg go and turned back to his stunned family.   
“Look, we can discuss all of this later but Lucifer is gonna turn up soon and I don’t wanna be late.”  
“Uh, did Meg just listen to you?”  
“Great focus, Sammy. How about we focus on the literal devil instead of one demon?”  
“You got a lot of explaining to do, idjit.”  
“Yeah, Bobby, I know, but could we get to the main part of this mission first?”  
He turned and walked away before he would have to face Ellen and Jo’s questions too because he had absolutely no interest in that. It would be hard enough to deal with it later. At least they followed him without annoying him more. They found the place where Lucifer would turn up. They were early. Dean was nervous. Sam rested his hand on his shoulder.   
“You can do it.”  
“Thanks for the motivation but that isn’t gonna make it easier.”  
Sam rolled his eyes and offered a weapon to him. It was the colt.   
“You seriously want me to hold onto that?”  
“You’re the only one who can get close enough, you know. I doubt that Meg is gonna let us get close enough for a shot.”  
“I guess you’re right.”  
Dean didn’t really like having the colt in his hand in that moment. He hadn’t come here to hurt or kill Lucifer; he had come here to find out what was going on and how things were with Lucifer’s psyche. The tension was rising and it was clear to see on every single one of them. Even the hellhounds weren’t making a single sound anymore. Dean kept himself between his family and Meg so no one could kill the other.   
The demons were focused on the hill in front of them and before anything could happen Dean parted from the others to come from another side. It would be far too obvious if he stayed with them. Meg kept away from the hunters. The demons on the field didn’t seem to notice them or they just did not care.   
Then Lucifer appeared and Dean wanted to run into his arms. He was just as beautiful as the last time he had seen him. It was amazing, the whole thing felt like it had been yesterday, yet so much happened since then. The demons looked up at him and it was time.   
Dean stepped out of the shadows and moved close. He had the gun at the ready though he had to admit to himself that his hand was shaking. Nothing in him was determined enough to pull the trigger just yet. Lucifer hadn’t noticed him yet, he was still speaking to the demons. It was something about summoning Death. Why was Lucifer playing along with this.   
“Lucifer, stop.”  
It was about the most stupid idea he had ever had. Dean should have slowly come nearer and not have just started talking.   
All four hunters seemed shocked. Booby’s face was basically telling him how idiotic he was. Sam mostly looked confused. It seemed like he had no idea what was going on. Well, they would find out soon, no matter which was it would go.   
“Dean?”  
His head snapped back to Lucifer, whose neutral and regal expression had faded. He was looking at him in a way that was familiar, that told Dean that this was the same Lucifer that he had known back then. There was no way that this expression was fake.   
The colt fell to the ground. Dean didn’t need it.   
“Lucifer.”  
Both smiled at each other and one moment later they were in each other’s arms, much to the shock of everyone around them. Dean didn’t even realise just how absolutely dumbfounded his family looked because his focus was on the fallen archangel that he had missed so incredibly much.   
“What the fuck is going on here?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that is part one of the big reveal.
> 
> In the next chapter we'll have a closer look at the reactions from Sam, Bobby, and the Harvelles.
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter!


	20. Abyss

Dean turned to Sam. He had to face his family now. It was the single most awkward moment in his life. Nothing could beat this. His whole family was, including Ellen and Jo, were staring at him as if he had completely lost his mind. It was the most uncomfortable moment he had in a long time.  
“Uhm, guys, could you give me a moment?”  
He knew that he had to come clean now but he had just found Lucifer again. All his anxiety about the state Lucifer could have been in had finally vanished and he could be happy that he had his Lucifer back. Before the others could say anything, Lucifer spoke up.  
“Dean, I cannot believe my luck. I was sure that I missed your lifetime, knowing that I was gone for millennia.”  
“I couldn’t have let you miss me. I missed you too much for that.”  
“And the others?”  
“Not all of them, but quite a few of them were locked behind seals. They’re back now.”  
Lucifer smiled at him and Dean thought about how much he had missed Lucifer’s smile. The next moment Dean was pulled into a kiss and he was so distracted by that that the gasps from his family didn’t even register to him. His whole attention was on Lucifer.  
“Could you make out with the devil after you tell us what the fuck is going on?”  
Dean sighed. There was no way around it now.  
“Yeah, I’ll tell you what’s going on.”  
“It’s about time, boy.”  
Bobby’s reply didn’t make it any easier for him. He knew that he had put off telling them about what happened for far too long now. He didn’t need to be reminded that he had kept secrets from the people he trusted the most. Without even realising it he took Lucifer’s hand in his own. He needed someone to hold onto in that moment.  
“You guys remember when I vanished? I was thrown into the past. I met Lucifer and the fallen angels. We got to know each other. In short, they’re not evil, guys.”  
“And you really believe that?”  
“Yes, I know them. I’ve spent more than enough time with them to know. Besides, I haven’t been hurt when I came back, right?”  
“Then they’re trying to manipulate you!”  
“Could you listen to me instead of trying to find ways for me to be wrong?”  
He regretted his harsh reaction immediately but it was so annoying. It had been that way his whole life. The few times he wasn’t going along with what everyone else thought he was wrong, he was manipulated, he was naïve, he was too suspicious. At least in the eyes of the others. Was it really too much to allow Dean to form opinions of his own?  
The others seemed to be quiet at the moment at least. Dean took that chance.  
“I’ve been there with them in Hell when it hadn’t been the shithole it’s now.”  
“What?”  
“Not now, Lucifer.”  
Lucifer probably wanted to know why Hell was a shithole now. They both had known a different Hell. The Hell that they had made a home out of. Sadly that Hell was gone, probably destroyed by demons. That talk had to wait for later though.  
“I’ve seen them recover after the war; I’ve built Hell up again with them. Fuck, I’ve been to the garden with Lucifer and I’ve seen how Adam and Eve were. I swear, you wouldn’t want that. I wouldn’t wish that to my worst enemy. Lucifer isn’t the bad guy in this.”  
“Dean, all the lore says something else!”  
“What, you mean the lore given to us by heaven? I’m not really surprised.”  
“Lucifer is the reason demons exist.”  
“I don’t care. I really don’t. If demons are the consequence of what happened in heaven then fine.”  
“You can’t say that! You’ve seen Hell!”  
“And that’s exactly why I’m saying that. Because I’ve seen Hell but I’ve also seen the so called paradise. Paradise can get lost!”  
His family was staring at him like he had lost his mind completely and Dean had starting to get the feeling that this wouldn’t end well, no matter how much he tried. He didn’t want to lose his family over this but he wouldn’t let Lucifer down. Never. Lucifer had been at the receiving end of so much hate and slander that Dean wouldn’t leave his side again. It hadn’t been voluntary the first time either and there wouldn’t be another time.  
“Have you lost your mind?”  
“Dean, what are you saying?”  
“Boy, you can’t be serious!”  
“That’s why you let me kill Lilith?”  
It was a cacophony of voices and Dean was starting to get a headache. These people were supposed to be his family but they didn’t listen to him, didn’t give Lucifer one chance to prove himself. Dean was not only disappointed, he was getting angry. He glared at them.  
“Fuck it, then don’t believe me! I’m definitely not gonna kill Lucifer and I’m not gonna hurt him!”  
He kicked away the colt to emphasize his point. That was the worst possible idea that he could have had because the very next moment Jo had grabbed it and shot Lucifer. Dean shouted Lucifer’s name in shock, sure that he had just lost Lucifer for good. His heart had stopped for a moment, he was sure. When Lucifer stood up again though Dean sighed in relief.  
“Fuck, Lucifer, you scared me!”  
“I am sorry, Dean. I have to say, I was quite surprised too. Thankfully this weapon does not kill me.”  
The four hunters didn’t seem at all pleased by that turn of events. Dean just wanted to leave. He had never thought that he’d ever feel betrayed by the good part of his family. Lucifer had to have noticed how Dean felt because he turned to them.  
“As Dean would say; Go fuck yourself.”  
In any other situation Dean would have found the archangel cursing funny but right now he couldn’t appreciate it. Right now he just wanted out of this situation.  
“Dean, you can’t go with him!”  
For some reason those words hurt more because they came from Sam.  
“What? You’re gonna tell me not to come back if I walk away now?”  
That made Sam flinch. In that moment Dean didn’t care. He was angry and he had every right to be. They were all not even listening to what he was saying! Lucifer seemed concerned, probably because he had never seen Dean that angry before. Back then Dean had had no reason to be angry because he had never had any faith in God. What he had a lot of faith in until that moment was his family. It had been a strong faith that Dean never thought would be broken. In that moment he was proven wrong though. That was enough to have Dean angrier than ever before.  
“No, but what you’re doing is wrong!”  
“It’s not.”  
“You’re going to regret it!”  
“I won’t.”  
The other three hunters just stood there, looking on in shock as the brothers talked. Dean’s focus was on Sam.  
“You know, Sammy, sometimes you sound exactly like dad.”  
Another low blow but Dean had enough. He had tried to explain it and had hoped to make them understand but apparently he wasn’t good enough to be taken seriously.  
“Come, Lucifer, let’s go. The others are waiting for us.”  
He turned and already wanted to walk away with Lucifer when Sam spoke up again.  
“If you go with him we’ll be on different sides!”  
“I guess I’ll see you on the battle field then, Sammy.”  
As they left the town Dean didn’t look back. He didn’t want to see Sam’s expression or the expressions of the others. They refused to understand. It wasn’t even that they couldn’t, they didn’t want to.  
“Dean.”  
“Not now, Lucifer. I… Just give me some time.”  
"Of course."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 200 Kudos! I can't believe it! Thank you all so much!  
> I appreciate everyone who leaves a comment or kudo but also all of you silent readers!
> 
> I officially made a tumblr now! Come and talk if you want, you're all invited!  
> iudexinfernalis.tumblr.com
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter, even though it's not the happoest one


	21. Bonding

The pain of what happened at Carthage had ruined his happy mood that he should have had from getting Lucifer back. He just felt betrayed and left alone by the people he had loved most. At least Lucifer seemed to listen to what he was saying because he was silent, just walking by his side with his arm around Dean’s waist. It was his only comfort and to Dean’s surprise it really helped, at least a little bit. It was mostly anger and hurt that he had to deal with on the way back, even though Lucifer was obviously doing his best to cheer Dean up, complaining about how slow they were in this machine called a car. Dean was incredibly grateful for Lucifer in that moment but even that didn’t do much.   
It was awful when everyone instantly noticed Dean’s mood. They greeted Lucifer happily and Dean watched as hugs were exchanged. It was like they knew Dean needed some space right now. For him it was enough to watch the others greet Lucifer. Then came the question that made the mood in general go down.   
“Where is Belial?”  
The question was innocent enough but it had a giant impact on everyone in the room. To Dean’s surprise Castiel himself stepped forward.   
“I am sorry, Lucifer, that was my fault. I saw Belial with Dean and reacted before assessing the situation because I thought that Dean was in danger.”  
Dean had never thought that Castiel would ever feel that sorry for something. Lucifer seemed surprised too. He looked around at the others as if he hadn’t expected them to let Castiel live. Then again, if Moloch had had his way in the first moment Castiel had stepped in he would be dead.   
“Castiel, you are sincere in your regret. I cannot tell you that you are forgiven because that will be Moloch’s decision.”  
Moloch looked absolutely shocked that Lucifer had known about him and Belial. Apparently Lucifer hadn’t minded at all.   
“I know.”  
It looked to Dean as if Castiel expected to be killed. Almost like he had made peace with it.   
“Why are you here, Castiel?”  
That wasn’t what Dean had expected. Castiel hadn’t either, apparently.   
“I came here to apologize because I saw that what I had done was unjust. I wanted to show that I regret my actions, knowing that I would not be able to return to heaven. While I stayed here I learned more about your rebellion. If you do not intend to kill me I would like to join you.”  
That made even Dean forget about his own troubles for a moment. Castiel had never surprised him that much before. Lucifer was surprised too. He looked around at the fallen angels.  
“It is not my decision alone. Anyone who does not want Castiel to join us may speak up now.”  
The fallen angels looked at each other and at Dean, reminding Dean that he was one of them. That was probably the biggest help to his mood. Knowing that at least some people were still there for him and valued his opinion made at least somewhat up for what happened.  
Dean stayed silent though. He saw no reason to object to it. Castiel meant what he was saying.   
Not even Moloch raised his voice to object. He was the one Dean had expected to object but he was silent. That silence continued until Lucifer decided that the vote was cast.  
“Castiel, it seems like you are one of us now.”  
“Thank you, Lucifer and all you others. I appreciate it.”  
Dean smiled and walked up to Cas.   
“Great to have you on board.”  
“Thank you, Dean.”  
Beelzebub stepped up too.  
“He fits in really well. We all are just now exploring this world.”  
Lucifer seemed quite pleased that Castiel was accepted by the others, even though Dean was sure that it would still take a while until Moloch would really forgive him. Seeing them now made Dean pretty optimistic that Moloch would forgive him one day.   
The room settled after that. Dean talked with Lucifer while Beelzebub was teaching Cas how to play pool. Cas seemed so hilariously confused about the concept but Beelzebub was determined to help Cas.   
“I have never seen an angel act so clumsy before.”  
Dean chuckled about Lucifer’s comment.   
“He’s trying at least.”  
Unlike his family, who would rather see Dean go than try to understand and learn. It was still making him angry to even think about it.   
“Maybe I’m the only one.”  
“What?”  
“Maybe no one else is gonna understand it. Maybe I’ll always be the only person who sees through this and no one listens to me anyway.”  
“Dean, we do not need the whole world on our side. You are enough.”  
“You’re saying that now but when Michael comes and wants to fight you’ll wish that it wasn’t just me.”  
“No, Dean. I do not intend to fight. Would I fight Michal, I would just follow my father’s plan. That is not what I want.”  
“That makes sense. But how do we put an end to this without fighting?”  
“Well, first we should find the person intended to be Michael’s vessel.”  
“Done.”  
“What? How?”  
Dean just pointed at himself and for a moment Lucifer just stared at him. He obviously hadn’t expected that. Then Lucifer started laughing. It was contagious and Dean was laughing along. The irony wasn’t lost to Dean. He hadn’t known it back then but the moment Meg had told him about it he had found it funny. It was so strange how things worked out sometimes.  
“It is strange. You are nothing like my brother.”  
“I was. I’ve been pretty much a human copy of Michael until my dad told me that I might have to kill my brother. That was the end of that. But you helped a lot too. Spending time with you guys and especially you gave me the final push to really be independent.”  
“One could call your trip to the past an educational experience then.”  
“Definitely.”  
At the pool table Cas had just accidentally hit Beelzebub with a pool ball and was apologizing. Dean and Lucifer were laughing again. Spending time with Lucifer and the others lifted his mood a lot. It was a way to deal with how his family had treated him. Maybe he should try to leave that behind himself. After all, they had ignored what he had said so he could ignore them too, at least for a while. At the very least until they apologize.   
Moloch walked over to them and sat down next to them.   
“So, what are you planning?”  
“For now I want to settle in this modern time. There is no hurry to do anything. Besides, I have missed all of you. I want to have some time with you. Besides, I think Castiel should have some time to adjust.”  
“I think he’s adjusting pretty well.”  
Dean gestured over where Cas was moving a lot more fluently than before. He seemed far more comfortable in his vessel now than he had been before.   
“That has more to do with him falling than with adjusting.”  
“Why’s he falling?”  
“Heaven has found out about his ‘betrayal’. They are casting him out and slowly breaking his connection to them.”  
“It’s kinda strange that it’s not bothering him at all.”  
Lucifer shrugged.   
“I think that is a positive sign.”  
Dean rolled his eyes at him. Before he could say anything else though, his phone rang. It was Sam. At first Dean didn’t even want to pick up but he had always been far too optimistic. So he picked up.   
“What?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter is going to be with Sam again but it's only one, so bear with me.
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter!


	22. Pressure

When Dean left them behind in Carthage Sam couldn’t believe it. Dean had left them and went with Lucifer. He chose to go with the literal devil over his family. Sam would have never thought that this could happen. Even after Dean was out of sight he was staring at the spot they had been standing at. The scene had been so unreal…  
“Did we hallucinate or did that idjit really go with Lucifer?”  
“Nope, he really did.”  
All four of them were completely baffled. None of them really knew what to say. Sam wanted to say something, anything, to make the situation better. There was no way though. There was no changing what happened. For the first time in his life he was sure that his brother wasn’t coming back. It was the most awful feeling ever.   
“Dean better get back on track soon.”  
Sam doubted it. That was the first time that he had ever doubted that there was a chance of Dean seeing reason. They would not be able to convince Dean and it made Sam hate Lucifer for manipulating his brother like that. He had armies of demons but he had to choose his brother to manipulate. Fuck Lucifer and his minions.  
They drove back in absolute silence. Noone said a word and they didn’t need to. Everyone was lost in their own thoughts and even though Sam didn’t know what the others were thinking about but he was sure it was all about Dean. The scene they had witnessed was burned into their minds. Dean hadn’t listened to what they had tried to say. He hadn’t changed his mind and instead had gone with Lucifer.   
Back at Booby’s it was still incredibly silent. Nobody spoke, even though they ate together and went on to do research. For Sam it seemed like something was missing without Dean. He still wanted the door to Bobby’s house to open and to see Dean walk in.   
“I would think I interrupted a funeral.”  
All four hunters looked up at the man who randomly appeared in the house. Four weapons were pointed not even a second later.   
“Who are you?”  
“My name is Zachariah and I come in Michael’s name.”  
“What are you doing here? I thought you’d be looking for that Michael’s sword?”  
“Due to unfortunate events the swords has been taken by the enemy.”  
“Don’t talk around it. Just tell us what’s going on.”  
“Dean was meant to be Michael’s sword but since he has now joined forces with Lucifer the plan for paradise is in peril.”  
Sam stared at the angel. Dean had been chosen to be Michael’s sword? How? Bobby didn’t seem to trust the angel and Ellen looked sceptical too. Jo seemed far too confused to think much on what they had just learned.   
“What is even meant with Michael’s sword?”  
“He should have helped Michael beat Lucifer and bring paradise to earth.”  
The angel looked incredibly arrogant and Sam hated the guy just from looking at him but angels didn’t lie. That meant that Dean had with his decision basically kept heaven from being able to fight.   
“But what can we do?”  
“Dean needs to be separated from Lucifer. Then we can make sure that he will be able to take on the responsibility he has.”  
Sam grimaced a bit. Dean needed to get away from Lucifer but it just didn’t feel right what this angel was saying. Then again, there was no other way to get Dean back to normal. Something must have happened and Lucifer must have exploited it.   
“He probably won’t talk to us.”  
“It is enough to bring him away from Lucifer. We will do the rest.”  
“How?”  
“That is something you must find out yourself. You must hurry, otherwise Lucifer might win.”  
Zachariah had disappeared a moment later and Sam was staring at the spot where the angel had been.   
“You know that the angels started the apocalypse too right?”  
Bobby had a point there. The angels had just as much been working to free Lucifer and to start the apocalypse. They had been out to start this fight and now they wanted to make sure that it happened.   
“But do we have any better idea of getting Dean out?”  
Ellen had a point too. Dean wasn’t listening to them. He had told them that there was no way that he would change his mind. Given the decision between them and Lucifer ended with Dean leaving with Lucifer talking didn’t seem like much of an option anymore.   
“There’s no good option, right?”  
Sam wanted there to be an option. A third option that was neither letting Dean be caught by angels nor leaving him with the devil. That had always been Dean’s thing though, going against the pre-set options.   
“Fuck, I wish Dean was here.”  
Again Bobby’s house felt incredibly lonely. Sam couldn’t even focus on anything other than the option he had just gotten from Zachariah. A way to get Dean back. They just needed to get him away from Lucifer. Maybe he would pick up his phone. Dean wouldn’t just continue to be silent, right?  
Sam pulled out his phone and stared at it for a moment. He had turned it off back at the airport but it usually wasn’t Dean’s thing to just turn it off. Then again, was Dean really still Dean?  
“You’re not really thinking about it, right?”  
“What else can we do, Bobby? The angels aren’t the best option but I can’t think of anything else.”  
“What if Lucifer isn’t manipulating Dean?”  
“I hope you’re not saying what I think you’re saying.”  
“I’m just saying it’s possible that no one manipulated him, Sam. Maybe it’s what he wants.”  
“You don’t really believe that, do you?”  
Bobby was silent and for Sam that was answer enough. Bobby seriously thought that Dean chose to join Lucifer. He couldn’t believe that. He refused to believe that. There was no was that his brother was going around, fighting alongside that evil bastard. That was the last straw. Sam would prove to Bobby that it wasn’t Dean’s choice. He would prove that it was Lucifer’s manipulation that made him change like that. With an angry expression he pulled out his phone.  
It rang. At the very least Dean hadn’t turned it off.   
“What?”  
“Dean!”  
Sam was so happy to hear his brother and he sounded okay. Angry, but okay. Sadly Dean was angry at them instead of angry at Lucifer.   
“Hey, uh, sorry about what happened in Carthage.”  
It felt terrible lying to Dean but if he openly told him what he was planning then Dean wouldn’t come.   
“Want to meet up?”  
There was a long pause on the other side. Sam wasn’t sure if Dean would agree. What happened there was the most serious fight they had ever had.   
“Sure, I wanted to show Lucifer-“  
“Only you.”  
Another long pause on the other end.   
“Then I’m not coming.”  
“Look, I just don’t trust Lucifer. I just want to talk it out and maybe grab something to eat. Burgers?”  
Sam bit his lip, hoping that it would convince Dean to come.  
“Alright. But you’re paying.”  
“I promise.”  
As they hung up Sam sighed in relief. He would get his brother back. Bobby looked at him with concern.   
“Are you sure you’re doing the right thing, Sam?”  
“I don’t know but it’s my only option.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, that was the chapter from Sam's perspective. Next one we're switching back to Dean. 
> 
> As always I hope you enjoyed the chapter!


	23. Broken

Dean hung up the phone and sighed. He had a bad feeling about this but why should he? Sam wanted to talk! He should be relieved that Sam was offering to talk, not doubting that it was a good idea. Then again, some healthy doubt had gotten him to befriend Lucifer and the others, so it couldn’t be that bad to doubt… but he also had to give Sam a chance to make up for it. He couldn’t just never talk to him again when Sam was approaching him.  
“What’s wrong?”  
“I have a bad feeling about this and I don’t know why.”  
Lucifer seemed to understand him. It made Dean feel less like he was paranoid and he was grateful for that. After all, he could have just told him that he was paranoid and that everything would go well but Lucifer had listened to Dean’s instincts back then and it didn’t seem like he was intending to stop now.   
“You can always pray to me if something goes wrong.”  
“Really? I didn’t know that’s possible.”  
“We are still angels, Dean. People can still pray to us. They just do not do it.”  
“Oh. Alright. That’s good to know. I’ll pray if anything bad happens.”  
The next day Dean drove to meet Sam. The bad feeling didn’t leave him the whole drive. Something was bugging him. Maybe it was how fast Sam called him, maybe it was something in the way Sam had said it. Whatever it was, it wasn’t good. Dean was inclined to trust his instincts but that would be admitting that he didn’t trust his own brother, which was just absurd. He had never and would never distrust his brother. There was no way Sam would deceive him.   
He walked into the little diner that they had agreed on as their meeting spot and looked around. It looked completely normal. What had he even worried about it?  
Sam was already waiting for him. Dean sat down across from him and looked at him.   
“Hey Sammy.”  
“Hey Dean.”  
For a moment they were both quiet, none of them quite knowing what to say.   
“I just want to say again that I’m sorry. I didn’t know how to deal with it.”  
“It’s okay. I get it. I would’ve had problems too. I was just angry because Lucifer doesn’t deserve that.”  
“Are you sure he’s not as bad as they say.”  
“Absolutely. I know it sounds strange but for me he’s the good guy in this.”  
“That is not strange. It is simply wrong.”  
Dean startled at the pretentious voice that interrupted their conversation. The guy had just kind of suddenly appeared. Then it hit Dean and he glared.   
“You’re an angel, aren’t you?”  
“You are quite right, Dean Winchester. I am sent from heaven by Michael to return you to the right path to become Michael’s sword.”  
Dean glared at the angel first and then looked at Sam.  
“Did you know about that?”  
Sam’s expression became guilty instantly and Dean knew that he had hit the nail right on the head. His brother had set him up. There was no better way on saying it. He was led into a trap by Sam himself.   
“I just wanted to help you. I mean, you can stop the apocalypse.”  
“As a fucking angel condom, you dumbass!”  
Dean felt furious. Back at Carthage he had thought that his anger couldn’t get more intense but finding out that Sam had led him into a trap set by angels was a whole new low. There was some way to understand why the others had reacted so badly to finding out about him and Lucifer but there was no way Dean would ever understand this.   
“What?”  
“You didn’t even ask how I’m meant to end the apocalypse? God fucking damnit, Sammy!”  
The angel seemed incredibly smug about their conversation and Dean wanted to punch him in the face so much. He had done that to Cas though and noticed who was the hurt one in such a situation.   
“I just wanted to help you get free from Lucifer’s manipulation.”  
“He wasn’t manipulating me! Fuck, you don’t get it, I chose to side with him! I love him!”  
That wasn’t a confession he had wanted to make in front of an angel other than Lucifer but he had been too angry to think about the situation to think about censoring what came out of his mouth.   
Then suddenly pain so awful that he nearly fell out of the seat he was in hit him and he gasped. He was coughing up blood in no time and Sam looked at him, an expression of absolute horror on his face.   
“Since we do not think you will join us voluntarily, we have to use some persuasion.”  
Dean glared up at the angel but couldn’t say a word. Instead he coughed up more blood and groaned in pain.   
“Zachariah! That wasn’t what we talked about!”  
“You never asked how we intend to save Dean from Lucifer. You just wanted them to be separated.”  
“You son of a bitch!”  
Never before had Dean felt so incredibly betrayed. Sam really had told this angel to come. He had told him he could have Dean, that he would deliver his brother to him.   
His thoughts were interrupted by another wave of pain. Sam was now bent over in pain too.   
“So, Dean, Michael needs your permission. You can help bring an end to this. Your pain, your brother’s fear, the apocalypse…”  
“Go fuck yourself.”  
Dean took a deep breath. In his mind he was calling out for Lucifer, hoping that he would come. He wouldn’t give in and say yes but he wanted this agony to end. It felt like his insides were being ripped apart.  
He was sure that he was one moment away from passing out when there was a bright light and Zachariah dropped to the ground. Lucifer was standing over him with an expression so cold and hateful that Dean would have been afraid if it wasn’t clearly aimed at Zachariah.  
Lucifer touched Dean and suddenly the pain was gone. He could breathe again. As soon as he was sure that he could move again he embraced Lucifer.  
“Thank you so much.”  
“There is no need to thank me, Dean.”  
Sam was still in pain, groaning next to them. For a moment, just for a moment, Dean contemplated leaving him there to take care for whatever Zachariah had done to them himself. It was really tempting after what Sam had done. He wasn’t going to be that petty though.  
“Heal Sam too, please.”  
Lucifer seemed surprised at the request. He probably knew what Dean was thinking and he had probably also concluded what had happened from the scene he had come to. Despite that Lucifer nodded and healed Sam too. Once he was healed he got up.  
“Dean, I’m so sorry.”  
“Take your sorry and shove it up your ass, Sammy! I don’t wanna hear it. Actually, I don’t wanna even see you. Get lost.”  
“But Dean…”  
“I said I don’t wanna hear it. Never again.”  
Dean turned and started walking towards the exit. Sam wanted to follow him but Lucifer blocked him. The fresh air outside made Dean calm down a bit. It didn’t do that much though. There wasn’t anything that could do much against all the negative emotions that made him feel sick. Lucifer joined him outside.   
“Let’s go back.”  
Lucifer just nodded without saying anything. Not that Dean would have been talkative at the moment. He was still dealing with what had happened.  
Back with the others they instantly wanted to know what happened. Thankfully Lucifer kept them away from Dean. Not that Dean wanted to snap at any of them but that would be the result if any of them talked to him. It wasn’t their fault and Dean didn’t want to make them feel bad when they hadn’t done anything.   
For a while Dean just leaned against the wall without saying a word. Suddenly his phone rang and he pulled it out. He shouldn’t have done that. Sam’s name was on the screen and the anger surged up again. It all became too much and with a loud shout Dean threw his phone against the other wall. It shattered into pieces and they fell to the floor.  
“People are awful! Fuck them!”  
“Dean?”  
“No, seriously. I’ve had enough. I don’t care anymore.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, I hope I kept the scene appropriate for the rating.  
> Is there a limited amount of swearing for the T-rating? I hope not!


	24. Comfort

Every single angel in the room was staring at Dean. It would have made him incredibly uncomfortable if he hadn’t been more focused on his own anger than on anything else. How dare Sam call him after what happened? How dare he even think that he could try and justify what he had done? There was no excuse. Nothing could make it better for him.  
What happened with Adam and Eve should have given Dean a clue about how his family would react, how everyone would react. They just couldn’t even think for a second that there was a reason why they had done all this. They couldn’t even listen. They didn’t want to listen. Nothing would ever convince them that it wasn’t like it seemed. Why did they want everything to be easy? His family should have understood that not everything was black or white but no, just because he was Lucifer he was automatically the personification of evil.  
Lucifer stepped up to him and rested his hand on his shoulder. It calmed Dean a bit and he leaned into the touch. While his family had been the ones who had completely abandoned him, Lucifer was there for him. He would never leave Dean or tell him that he was manipulated or disregard what he was saying. Lucifer respected him. Dean just wanted to have him close now.  
“I want to be alone with you for a while.”  
That had to be enough for Lucifer to know that it was serious. It hadn’t taken Lucifer long to figure out that Dean was not eager to talk about emotions, so saying that openly to Lucifer meant that he really was at a point where he needed some kind of help or he would seriously break down. Very few things could actually throw him off like that but losing his family, no, being abandoned and betrayed by his family did it easily.  
Lucifer seemed to understand it without any further explanation. It made sense. Lucifer had lost his family too and he knew how it felt to be pushed away by the people he had loved most. He knew how much it hurt to try and tell them what was going on, only for them to dismiss him.  
Sam and the others probably saw him as a traitor just like the other angels saw Lucifer as one. He thought he had understood Lucifer before but now he understood him even more. At least Lucifer had the fallen angels.  
Then again, Dean had them too. They were his friends. They were kind of a family. Lucifer might have read his thoughts because he held Dean closer. It calmed Dean more but it didn’t stop the anger boiling in him completely. There was no saying if it ever would.  
“Well, it has been a few millennia and it has not stopped for me.”  
“That’s not good news but you know that I’m not a fan of you reading my wind.”  
“I just want to help you.”  
Dean sighed because he was sure that Lucifer meant well. He trusted Lucifer and knew that he wouldn’t abuse that ability. It wasn’t like it would be of much use for him either way. It were his thoughts, what value did they have?  
“You know, I would prefer it if you were angry instead of putting yourself down.”  
“You saw what happened. I mean, Sammy basically told me that what I’m thinking can’t be my own thoughts and can’t be what I really want. Apparently free will only applies to those who Sam Winchester deems intelligent enough.”  
Even Dean himself noticed just how bitter and angry he sounded. He couldn’t help it thought. There was nothing he could think of that had ever made him that angry. He didn’t know if he could ever forgive that or if he even wanted to.  
“Stop this. What your brother thinks does not affect your free will and how intelligent you are. It also certainly does not affect the value of your opinion because to me your opinion means more to me than my father’s would.”  
That meant more to Dean than he could express in that moment. He pulled Lucifer close though. It was easy for him to doubt himself. It had been what he had heard his whole life. Having someone tell him that his opinion was valuable was new. It felt good. Really good.  
Dean got up and took Lucifer’s hand. As much as he loved the others, he needed some alone time with Lucifer right now. Then they went into one of the other rooms. The last bit he noticed from the others was Beelzebub’s laugh as Cas asked why Dean wanted to be alone with Lucifer. He was absolutely sure that Beelzebub would just make up something dirty.  
The petty part of him wanted to take a picture of him and Lucifer kissing and send it to Sam. In this case it was probably good that he had trashed his phone completely. The reply he would be sure to get would have just made his day even worse.  
He pulled Lucifer into a soft kiss. It calmed him down a lot. All the pain was worth it because he knew that Lucifer was there by his side. The room around them was silent and Dean was glad about it. For once he wanted forget that there was a world around them. Lucifer took up his attention.  
“You know, despite what happened, I really don’t regret it.”  
“Really?”  
“Yeah. I think it’s kinda time that I get my own life.”  
“You already did. Your family did judge you for doing what you think is right.”  
Dean rolled his eyes. He didn’t want to talk about them right now. They had come here so Dean could distract himself from what happened, not to talk about his family being assholes. Which they were, no doubt about it.  
Lucifer smiled at him and Dean was sure he was amused by Dean’s thought process. It might also have been the expressions on Dean’s face. He was still angry.  
“I know that it will take a while.”  
“Right now I wouldn’t give a fuck if the world ended. I’m so seriously fed up with everything about this.”  
“When I was cast out I thought the same thing. I would have immediately taken the chance to destroy everything in my sight if the others had not been with me. You helped too. Without you I would have grown to hate humanity.”  
“Well, now I’m the one who’s started hating humanity.”  
Lucifer chuckled at first but he was surprised to notice that Dean was serious. He would have never thought that Dean would hate humans. After all, he was human. There was no denying that. Dean could not literally read Lucifer’s thoughts but the fallen archangel’s expressions told him nearly as much as a mindreading ability would have.  
“I always thought people were crazy but I would’ve never thought that it’d get to that level .”  
Dean leaned closer to Lucifer and looked into his eyes. He smiled slightly.  
“But you know what? You’re definitely helping me get in control of my anger.”  
“I am glad.”  
“And you know what?”  
“What?”  
“I love you.”  
“I love you too, Dean.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is kind of inspired by CarvcrEdlund because Dean and Lucifer really needed a quiet moment.
> 
> Next chapter we will be visiting Sam again because he needs to get some sense beaten into him. Who will do the job?
> 
> As always I hope you enjoyed the chapter!


	25. Epiphany

Sam was pacing around at Bobby’s house while Bobby watched him with a rather pissed off expression.   
“It’s not my fault, Bobby!”  
“You sure about that? I thought that was you, falling for that angel’s trick.”  
“I just wanted to save Dean!”  
“I kinda had the impression that he didn’t want to be saved.”  
“He doesn’t know what he wants. Lucifer is manipulating him! I’ve seen it!”  
“In that future you got mysteriously sent to?”  
“Why don’t you believe me?”  
“Because it was either a bad dream or something the angels sent you to. I don’t trust either of those options.”  
“We don’t know that.”  
“There’s no other option, boy. You don’t just go to the future by yourself.”  
“Either way, Dean is being manipulated and we need to save him.”  
“You can’t save someone who doesn’t wanna be saved.”  
“We’re not getting anywhere with this.”  
“Only because of your stubbornness.”  
Sam sighed in frustration. Bobby just didn’t get it. He didn’t understand that Dean was manipulated. Of course Dean didn’t want to be saved because he didn’t know what he was doing. Was Sam the only one who realised how bad Dean had it?   
The most depressing thing was that he couldn’t do anything right now because he had no idea where Dean was. He couldn’t even track his phone because Dean had probably turned it off. It didn’t even ring anymore.   
“Fuck it, I’m going on a hunt.”  
“Sam…”  
He didn’t even let Bobby finish. At the moment he really didn’t want to talk to Bobby anymore. It absolutely didn’t make it better that he felt so damn helpless. He walked outside the house and got into one of Bobby’s cars. Maybe a hunt could help him vent all his frustration. The very least it would get him was some distance from the whole situation. Hopefully.  
After driving for at least a few hours he got himself a motel room. It was far too late anyway.   
Despite feeling incredibly tired Sam just couldn’t manage to fall asleep. Everything that happened was still running around in his head. He just wanted to scream for a while. Even one of his shouting matches with dad would have been better than this.   
It was way past midnight when Sam fell asleep.  
When he woke up he wasn’t in his bed anymore. The whole situation felt eerily similar, only this time the area didn’t look like it had gone through an apocalypse. It was actually quite the nice area. There was a street running right beside the spot where he had woken up.   
Sam got up and brushed off his clothes. Where was he now? It didn’t even seem like a place he had been to before. He started walking along the road. Okay, that one was definitely strange. What was the sense in showing him that road in the middle of nowhere?  
Finally he spotted a car. He sped up and got to it. A blonde woman that kind of resembled Jess was leaning over the opened hood of the car.   
“Hey! Everything okay?”  
The woman turned to him and she really seemed strangely similar to Jess. How strange.   
“Yes, except my car just refuses to move.”  
“Let me help you.”  
Sam took a look and thought he saw what was wrong. Dean had shown him often enough how to fix a car. He finished the work and proudly presented the car, only for it to explode as soon as the woman turned on the car. Sam was completely shocked, staring at the car.   
Before he could do anything else though, he was suddenly somewhere else. It seemed like it was a hospital. Sam was also mysteriously wearing a white doctor’s clothing. That wasn’t something angels would do. It was more something that… Oh… Sam’s expression became annoyed. He had thought something important might be going down. Instead he was dealing with this shit.   
“Doctor, you operation starts.”  
Sam looked at the nurse with a confused expression. Oh right. She meant him. It seemed like he had to go through this now. He was sure it would be a giant waste of time but it was better than just lying in his motel room and doing nothing.   
“Then let’s get started.”  
He had no idea what the message behind those scenes was but if he refused to go along with it he would have more problems. Despite him not being a doctor it seemed simple enough. He just had to make a small cut…  
Blood started spraying everywhere like it was a Quentin Tarantino movie. Everyone around him panicked while Sam was staring at the body. He was doing an awful lot of staring in this. The scene changed again. Sam was now in a SWAT uniform. He was standing in front of a bank. Someone walked up to him and told him about a hostage situation. Sam sighed and took the megaphone.   
“Come out now! There’s no way to run!”  
“I have twenty people here! I want a car to escape!”  
“Calm down, you have nowhere to go. There is no way this could end well for you.”  
“You’re right.”  
One moment later the whole building went up in flames. Sam had enough.  
“What the fuck do you want from me? What’s the purpose of putting me through all this shit? I’ve had a bad enough week already without the goddamn Trickster thinking I need a lesson!”  
“But you do, Sammy-Boy.”  
The guy next to him pulled off the headgear and revealed the smirking face of the Trickster.   
“I knew it was you!”  
Sam reacted quickly, punching the Trickster straight in the face. It felt like he had punched concrete. It was painful, making Sam hiss and clutch his hand.   
“Maybe you should try using that big brain of yours before you act.”  
“Maybe you should shut the fuck up. Why are you even doing this? I just lost my brother! Can’t I have my peace for once?”  
“You are by far the most stupid guy I’ve ever met. What do you think I’m trying to tell you? I sent you to that future so you could make things better and you go out there and fuck it up even more! Who the fuck listens to Zachariah? He is as sleazy as an angel can get!”  
“I wanted to save Dean from Lucifer!”  
Sam glared because the Trickster in front of him had seriously just facepalmed.   
“I thought I was talking to the smart Winchester. Can you get Dean? I think I’ll be more successful if I talk to him because you’re about as useful as a wet towel.”  
“You’re here judging me when I’ve tried my best! You’ve just stood by and watched!”  
“At least I didn’t make things worse! Not doing anything is better than making everything worse!”  
“How could it be any worse than it was before? Lucifer still has Dean.”  
“Yes, and if it wasn’t for you mountain of dumbass that would have been a good thing!”  
“What? Are you crazy? How’s Dean being manipulated by Lucifer a good thing?”  
“You seriously think that Lucifer is manipulating Dean? Still? I should have talked to Bobby Singer. He is at least one step ahead of you.”  
“Stop with the bullshit and tell me why you think that I should’ve left my brother with the literal devil?”  
“I can’t believe that I have to explain it.”  
It annoyed Sam that the Trickster looked at him like he was stupid. They should have killed that guy years ago. Instead he was standing in front of Sam and talking like he knew everything. There was no way that this lower pagan knew more about what was going on than Sam.  
“Okay, open your giant ears so I can explain. Lucifer doesn’t really like humans. If you want to know the reason, ask your brother. He knows the details. Dean came along and suddenly Lucy’s all heart eyes. Now what do you think happens when the only human Lucifer likes starts hating humans?”  
For once Sam was silent. No, that couldn’t possibly happen. There was no way that Dean would ever hate humanity, right? Not Dean, not his Dean. What in the world happened to Dean? The Trickster said that it wasn’t Lucifer’s manipulation that made Dean join him but what else could it be? Sam had more questions than answers now but there was one thing he knew.  
“If I can’t manage to talk to Dean then we’re screwed.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Had to shorten the chapter or it would have been the longest of the whole story...  
> I just had to put Gabriel into the stors and Sam needed a new perspective
> 
> As always I hope you enjoyed the chapter and thank you for all the kudos and comments and for reading!


	26. Trying

Bobby Singer would probably call what happened the worst day in a long while. He had stood there and could only stare as the man he considered his son walked away with the devil himself. Like Sam he had not wanted to believe it at first. It would have been easier to pretend that Lucifer had manipulated Dean, that Dean hadn’t been himself when he had told them that he was on Lucifer’s side. The more he thought about the scene, the more it seemed like there had been no manipulation at all. There had been nothing unnatural about the way Dean spoke or acted. It was almost like he was convinced that he was doing the right thing. The least he could hope was that Dean knew what he was doing. Then again, did that make it better or worse?  
“Bobby, I’m back.”  
“Was about time. I thought you’d never…Who the fuck is that?”  
He was pretty sure that the Trickster was standing next to Sam. That was impossible though. The Trickster should be dead. Yet there he was, standing right next to Sam, giving Bobby a look like he knew exactly what Bobby was thinking.  
“My name is Gabriel and…”  
“Wait what?”  
Bobby didn’t know if he should be more surprised that this guy was calmly introducing himself or exasperated that Sam didn’t think to ask that guy his name.   
“Gabriel. You know, the archangel?”  
“That explains a lot.”  
“No shit, Sherlock. Could we get back to the more important topic now?”  
“Right.”  
Was Sam seriously trusting an angel again? After the shit that went down with Zachariah he would have thought that Sam would be more suspicious of angels. Apparently not.   
“How do we know that we can trust you?”  
It should have been obvious to ask that question, yet Sam only seemed to realize now that it was a question he should have asked. Bobby needed to have a serious talk with Sam about learning from mistakes. That was a talk they should have had a while ago.  
“Believe me, I don’t want my brothers to continue all that fighting. I have seen enough.”  
Bobby didn’t fully believe Gabriel but the whole thing seemed to be genuinely hurting him.   
“Well, I’m gonna have an eye on you but I guess for now you’re our best chance.”  
“You especially need me since the big moose here fucked things up pretty badly.”  
“Hey!”  
It was true, Bobby knew that without the context. Sam had told him what had happened and it was completely obvious that he had made a big mistake. Dean had probably hoped that he might still get to talk to Sam about whatever happened and had instead been led into a trap.   
“Stop the banter and tell me what’s going on.”  
Gabriel seemed to become more serious at that. It was strange to see on a guy that they knew as the Trickster.   
“You see, Lucifer is no fan of humans. Got something to do with what happened at the garden. Important is that Dean is the only thing keeping Lucifer and the other fallen angels from outright hating humanity.”  
“Let me guess, thanks to Sam Dean won’t be much help anymore.”  
“Exactly.”  
“It’s not my fault!”  
Both Gabriel and Bobby glared at Sam. It was obvious that they both didn’t agree.  
“I think we should try to talk to Dean.”  
While Bobby nodded in agreement Sam groaned, sounding exasperated.  
“He won’t talk to me!”  
“No, but he might talk to me.”  
Bobby wanted to talk to Dean. The scene in Carthage would never cease to haunt him. He wanted to try and make it better. Maybe he could make things better.   
“That’s an awesome idea, Bobby!”  
“Yes, but Dean is seriously pissed off at the sasquatch here. That means he expects you to be here, so he won’t come or pick up his phone.”  
“So we’ve got no way to contact him.”  
“Not so fast. When you told me about that dream of yours…”  
“Not a dream. Gabriel showed mw the future!”  
“That’s not important right now. You said that the angels called Castiel a traitor.”  
“What?”  
It was Gabriel this time that interrupted, seeming completely startled to hear that. Bobby wondered if Gabriel had known Castiel at least somewhat even before this happened. Maybe they had even been close. Who knew, maybe Gabriel could be more help than Bobby had thought.   
“You didn’t know that? You sent me there! How can you not know that?”  
“I didn’t know the details, okay? It would not have been necessary to know if your brain size was proportional to your body size!”  
“Can you two idiots stop bantering for a moment and listen? I was just saying that we’re gonna be able to contact Dean through Castiel.”  
Gabriel didn’t seem happy about it at all but Bobby was sure that it was their chance to get in contact with Dean.   
“Got a better idea?”  
The archangel hesitated. It was getting more and more obvious that he wasn’t happy about it at all. He didn’t seem to have a better idea but he also didn’t want to be confronted with Castiel, who seemed to have changed sides just like Dean had.   
“No.”  
The answer was as grumpy as one would expect from a small child, not from an eternal being. Then again, to be the Trickster you had to be somewhat childish at least. Bobby sighed.  
“Then let’s call him. We shouldn’t be wasting time.”  
“We should also make a ring of holy fire.”  
Again Sam got a double bitchface from both the archangel and Bobby.   
“Haven’t you learned anything? Let’s try it without trapping him first.”  
“Just the oil. We can light it at any time or don’t light it at all. Just as a fail safe.”  
Gabriel seemed like he wanted to object but Sam had a point for once. He didn’t really want to have to fight Castiel. A plan in case Castiel attacked them would probably be a really good idea. Both Gabriel and Bobby agreed and Sam drew a circle of holy oil on the ground.   
“Okay, now I only need to pray to him.”  
“NO! Moose, how big do you think the chance is that Castiel doesn’t know what happened?”  
“He’s right, Sam. Castiel won’t come if you’re the one praying. Let me do it.”  
Sam didn’t like that at all but he couldn’t argue with that. It also was a hard thing to think about because Sam felt insanely guilty. Every plan he had so far went insanely wrong.   
Bobby got in position and started praying. He hoped that Castiel would at least come to see him.   
“Bobby Singer. What do you want?”  
All three others were staring at Castiel, who had just appeared in the middle of the room and in the ring of holy oil. He seemed a lot less friendly than before and that said something, considering Castiel hadn’t shown much emotions before that. When his gaze fell on Sam though it became outright hostile. Sam flinched at that. He had never seen that expression on Castiel’s face before. Before he had time to think about it he had thrown down his lighter and the whole circle of oil lit up.  
“Sam, what the fuck do you think you’re doing?”  
“Haven’t you seen the way he looked at me?”  
“Would you explain to me why you called me here?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> These scenes take more chapters than I thought but I promise we'll get back to Lucifer and Dean soon enough.
> 
> Thanks for all the comments and kudos and I hope you enjoyed the chapter!


	27. Principles

Bobby sighed at Sam’s behaviour and looked at Castiel. He had the feeling Castiel looked a lot less stiff than before. Maybe he was imagining it but Castiel looked almost relaxed. It was so strange, just like the open hostility towards Sam. Castiel seemed so much more… human? Maybe that was the wrong way to describe it but that was the way it felt to Bobby.  
“I wanna talk to Dean. You know, apologize.”  
Castiel seemed to be thinking about it. Bobby wondered why he didn’t regard Gabriel… Oh, the archangel was gone. He had probably vanished before Castiel appeared. Asshole.  
“I want to talk to him to.”  
“No. Not you.”  
The tone of the reply almost made Bobby shudder. If they had thought the emotionless tone had been bad they could be glad that they hadn’t known that one back then. Sam wasn’t even protesting, obviously not unaffected by that tone either. Bobby nodded.  
“I’ll be going with you. Sam stays here.”  
Despite obviously wanting to protest Sam kept his mouth shut. Thankfully. Bobby wasn’t sure if Castiel wouldn’t have hurt him. He dismissed the thought before he could get nervous about letting Castiel out. Sam looked at him and Bobby nodded again. He grabbed the extinguisher, putting out the fire. Castiel walked up to Bobby and before he could react they were both at the house of the fallen angels. Beelzebub was the first to approach.   
“Castiel, are you alright?”  
“Yes, do not worry about me. Bobby Singer wants to see Dean.”  
“I will lead him there. Rest. Your wings look singed at the edges.”  
Bobby didn’t like that. A fallen angel would lead him to Dean and the others seemed to be staring at him. It seemed like they all knew what happened. That didn’t help the tense atmosphere.   
“So, uh, what’s your name?”  
“Beelzebub.”  
Okay, the fallen angel obviously didn’t want to talk if the rather short reply was anything to go by. Bobby could work with that. He didn’t need to annoy a fallen angel that obviously didn’t have a high opinion of him already. They got to a room and Beelzebub knocked. Cursing that obviously came from Dean sounded from the room.  
“Fuck! One moment…”  
“…where did I put my pants…”  
“…seriously, the next time I’ll be trying for a pile…”  
“Dean… I think I might have ripped them.”  
“…are you fucking kidding me?”  
Bobby tuned out the rest because there were some things that he didn’t want to know about. Ever.   
It took over a minute until Dean opened the door. He grinned at Beelzebub before his gaze fell onto Bobby. His grin faded.  
“What are you doing here?”  
Lucifer was right next to Dean with his arm around Dean’s waist. Bobby felt more and more uncomfortable the more time passed. He had to get himself together though, for Dean and to stop the apocalypse from happening.   
“I wanna talk to you, boy. I’m sorry about what happened.”  
Dean seemed to hesitate and Bobby really couldn’t fault him for it because after what happened with Sam. It showed how much it hurt though to be led into this trap by his brother.   
“Yeah, let’s talk.”  
Bobby sighed in relief. He was sure that the fallen angel that had led him here would have sent him back the moment Dean would have said no. Dean pulled away from Lucifer. It was definitely obvious that he loved Lucifer, which still made Bobby incredibly confused. Lucifer was the definition of a bad guy. Dean gestured for Bobby to follow him and they walked into another room. Bobby relaxed a lot when they got some distance between them and the fallen angels.  
“So, what do you wanna talk about?”  
As if Dean didn’t know it. He just wanted Bobby to apologize again. Bobby was ready to give him that.  
“I wanna say sorry. It was a big shock for all of us. We didn’t want to hurt you. Could you please explain what happened? Why you’re… with Lucifer?”  
They probably sat there for hours. Bobby completely lost track of time as Dean told the story from start to finish. He finally understood where Dean had landed and how it had went down. There was even a slightly amused expression on Dean’s face when he told about the panic he had when faced with the fallen angels without any weapon. He also explained why he had been able to read enochian. Then his expression became serious though as he started talking about the Garden, Paradise.   
“It’s like the Borg, I swear. Individual mind forced into a collective. I’ve never felt that creeped out before. They felt like they were controlled by God. They didn’t have any idea that they’ve got free will. I couldn’t leave it at that.”  
“Wait, so it was really you who…?”  
“Yeah, with Lucifer’s help but it was my idea because I knew that story. I knew what the apple would do but I couldn’t stand seeing them that way.”  
Bobby was silent for a moment. On one hand, if the bible was to be believed then it was Dean’s fault that people die. On the other hand it was the only way humanity developed, the only way it was possible for science, music, art, so many things could exist. Was it worth it?  
“I didn’t know that part of the story.”  
He had to take a moment to think. Dying wasn’t really a good thing but all the amazing things that came from it… Would monsters exist if it hadn’t happened?   
“Dean, do you regret doing it?”  
“No. Not even once.”  
Bobby was silent for a bit longer. He didn’t know what to say to that. Thinking that over could make anyone’s head hurt.  
“Dean, you know that a lot of people would be alive if it weren’t for that, right?”  
“A lot of people wouldn’t have been born.”  
“People wouldn’t live in fear.”  
“A lot of people still don’t and we also wouldn’t have any curiosity or bravery.”  
“Demons wouldn’t exist.”  
“So? We can fight them. Better than sitting around and not even knowing that we’re individuals.”  
“People could be safe!”  
“But people wouldn’t be free!”  
It was starting to escalate into a shouting match. They both were just trying to explain their position but both were getting too riled up. Neither of them meant to start shouting but it quickly got out of hand.   
“Dean, your mother would still be alive!”  
“And she wouldn’t be the same person I knew and loved, if she’d even exist!”  
“Damnit, Dean! There’s a price to pay!”  
“Yeah, and it’s fucking worth it!”  
A knock on the door interrupted them. Dean stood and opened up, glad for the interruption.   
“I heard you shouting. Is everything okay?”  
“Yeah, yeah, we’ve just been discussing stuff.”  
“You were discussing very loudly then.”  
“Yeah, that happens.”  
Lucifer smiled a bit at Dean, who was incredibly grateful for the interruption. The tension had become unbearable and he would have never forgiven himself if he had lashed out and said something that he would have regretted. He turned back to Bobby.  
“Let’s calm down a bit. We can talk again when we’re not shouting at each other.”  
Bobby nodded silently. He too had to think this whole thing over.   
“I’ll tell Cas to bring you back.”  
“Beelzebub is taking care of his wings at the moment. We should send Mammon.”  
Dean nodded. Lucifer was right. He had said something about holy oil being damaging for the wings if it wasn’t treated soon.   
A few minutes later Bobby was gone again and Dean sighed.   
“I hoped so much that he’d understand.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And things are heating up more. At least those two talked to each other.
> 
> As always thank you for the kudos, comments and even just reading it.  
> I hope you're still enjoying it!


	28. Suspence

As soon as Bobby and Castiel were gone Sam sighed. He wouldn’t have been that surprised if Castiel had tried to kill him. The angel must have entertained the idea at least. At the very least. It still gave him shudders. Maybe he should continue doing some research while Bobby was away. Sam’s whole world was crumbling around him. First Dean had let him run into a trap, then he had led him into a trap that he hadn’t even known had been a trap. Dean didn’t even want to see him, Castiel had separated from the angels to fall.  
The words were right in front of his eyes but Sam wasn’t really reading. His thoughts were running wild and his focus was all but gone. He tried once again.  
The legends of the fall are…  
Why did Dean choose Lucifer? What happened that made him change his mind that much?  
And Adam and Eve in the garden were tempted…  
Wasn’t Castiel so loyal to his vanished father? Why was he so suddenly against him?  
Sam sighed and stood up. Okay, books didn’t help anything right now. He couldn’t even finish one sentence, no matter how hard he tried. Nothing could give him comfort from the thoughts that were haunting him.  
He was in the kitchen, making himself a coffee when Bobby appeared again, not looking happy either.  
“No success?”  
“We got into a fight.”  
“Oh.”  
“Watcha waiting for, boy? Back to researching.”  
“Can’t concentrate.”  
“We’ve got to.”  
Of course Bobby was right but it was always easier said than done. They both knew it. They were trying their hardest to continue their research and the lore but they both didn’t have any energy for it.  
After a few hours of research both of them had fallen asleep over their books. It had been too much for them.  
Sam woke up before Bobby for once, which was kind of a miracle since he usually was the one who slept the bare minimum of what he needed. That might explain why Sam felt like he was going to pass out at any moment. He needed a coffee and hoped Bobby still had that extra strong one.  
At least he hadn’t had an angel caused time travel this time. Either Gabriel had given up or it was getting better. Sam really hoped for the latter, otherwise they might be screwed without even knowing it.  
A sigh from behind him startled him. So Bobby was awake now too. Neither of them said a word. They didn’t need to. They both knew how dire the situation was. Both of them missed Dean incredibly.  
“You know, what Dean said made me think.”  
Sam looked up from his book at Bobby.  
“What do you mean?”  
Bobby closed his book, sighing deeply.  
“We’ve assumed that Lucifer and his angels are just evil but what if that’s not it? What if it’s more complicated than that?”  
“You’re seriously trying to tell me that the devil isn’t evil? It’s basically in the name.”  
“So you really believe that Dean just went dark side out of the blue? No reason?”  
“Well, Lucifer…”  
“Don’t start with that bullshit about being manipulated. I’ve seen Dean under monster influence. He’s not being manipulated. It’s what he thinks is right.”  
“Are you fucking with me?”  
“Shut up and listen. I said yesterday that we fought when I visited him. That was just the summary. Dean told me that it wasn’t Lucifer who gave them the apple.”  
“What?”  
Bobby glared at him. Sam promptly shut up.  
“It was Dean.”  
“What? Why?”  
“I was about to explain but you’re not able to keep your mouth shut. You know, there’s a reason it’s called tree of knowledge, apparently. Dean’s basically said that Paradise wasn’t what it seemed.”  
Sam was silent now. He was interested in that and he hadn’t gotten the chance to talk about it with Dean himself. Maybe Bobby could finally clear it up for him. Sam knew that he had fucked up and he could do nothing to make it up to Dean at the moment.  
“So Dean said something about them not knowing anything. Something about them not even knowing they had free will, that they were individuals.”  
That was a hard thing to think about, Sam had to admit that. Not even knowing that you’re in control of yourself? Feeling controlled while being independent? Nowadays it was called schizophrenia, at least some form of it, if Sam remembered right. What they had must have been extreme though.  
“Okay, now it makes so much more sense.”  
“Really? Cause I still don’t get it.”  
“Seriously, Bobby? Just imagine it! I wouldn’t want to have that horror.”  
“Are you aware that monsters wouldn’t exist if it didn’t happen?”  
“Hm, yeah, but we wouldn’t be the same either.”  
“That’s what Dean said too. Why do you think that?”  
“It makes sense. If we don’t know we’re individuals, we don’t act like individuals. We definitely wouldn’t be the same. And that’s only the basics. Do you really think we’d be the same without music or technology… or art… or books. I think Dean might be right.”  
Now Bobby was looking at Sam now like he had lost his mind.  
“Wow, seems like that big head is good for something, huh?”  
Both Sam and Bobby startled and looked at Gabriel, who had just appeared in the room. Was startling others some kind of angelic sport?  
“What the fuck are you doing here?”  
“I just wanted to see how you were doing and… Why the fuck do you think I’m here?”  
Sam knew Gabriel now but he was still surprised that an angel could be that capable of sarcasm.  
“Okay, okay, I get it. It’s something serious. Get on with it. I’ve been waiting to talk about this for a while now.”  
“You will forget about it quickly, I promise. Michael is getting desperate. He challenged Lucifer with a vessel that can’t hold him for long. That means he either beats Lucifer quickly or he counts on dying.”  
“Huh? I was sure that he’d come after me now that he knows he’s got no chance with Dean.”  
“No offense, Big Foot, but you’re too tainted for him.”  
Hearing that gave Sam a strange mix of feeling relieved and insulted at the same time. He definitely decided on relieved though because being used by an angel was not the best way to spend the rest of his life.  
“Wait, who did he take as his vessel?”  
“Your half-brother.”  
“Oh shit.”  
They had hoped so much that Adam would never get in contact with anything supernatural ever again. So much for that resolution. They had to be the worst brothers ever.  
“Where can we find them? We need to stop this!”  
“You can’t do shit against Michael.”  
Sam glared at Gabriel. He had enough of all that pessimism and especially of angels pretending that he had no idea what he was doing. Granted, he had probably given off that impression through his rather stupid deal with Zachariah.  
“We’ve got to try. We can’t just let this fight happen because we can bet on one thing…”  
“Dean’s gonna be there.”  
Exactly. Sam looked at Bobby and nodded. They both knew that Dean wouldn’t let Lucifer face Michael alone and they had to be there. They had to make it in time before something bad happened.  
“Let’s grab everything we could use. We’ve only got one chance.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that was this chapter. I think it was time Sam got a bit of insight too.
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter!


	29. Gift

Dean couldn’t get his mind off what happened. It had hit him hard that he had now lost Bobby completely too. Lucifer had told him that he should wait, give Bobby more time to think about it but from how Bobby looked at him Dean had serious doubt that that would happen. In that moment Lucifer and the others were the only ones he had.   
Being cut off from the original part of his family weighted heavily on him but at least he still had this part of his family. The fallen angels were definitely as much his family as Bobby and Sam. That made it at least a little bit better.   
He was sitting at that table with Lucifer and Mammon, playing cards and teaching Mammon different games because he was determined to beat Beelzebub.   
Beelzebub himself was currently trying to teach Cas pool, again. Dean had to glance over sometimes, amused about how absolutely exasperated he looked. Cas was apparently not a fast learner in some things. At least Beelzebub had the patience. Moloch was still sometimes glaring over at Cas but Dean had the feeling it was getting better. Cas had really made an effort too. That meant a lot.   
Lucifer noticed his gaze on Cas and smiled.  
“You are very fond of him.”  
Dean chuckled and nodded.  
“Yeah, he’s kind of become a brother to me. After what happened with Belial I thought I could never forgive him but… he’s so genuine with it.”  
“He is. I was really surprised but he has come a long way since then.”  
“Are we changing topic or can we continue our game?”  
“Sorry, Mammon. I’ve got problems focusing right now.”  
“I understand. But you should be careful or I might beat you.”  
“In your dreams. By the way, Beelzebub said that you’ve got a new collection. What’s it this time?”  
“You are just trying to distract me. But yes, I have. I found out that humans store knowledge in books.”  
“You’ve started a book collection?”  
“Yes, and they are more valuable than anything I have ever collected before. Not only about creatures but also about your understanding of the world. That makes it far easier to understand you and really, humans are so much more fascinating than I thought.”  
Dean was so happy about that. He would have never thought that he would hear that from one of the fallen angels.   
“How many books have you got in your collection?”  
“So far I have 78 books.”  
“Got a favourite Author?”  
“You do realize that this is a hard question? It also depends. Humans have invented a lot of different so called genres. I do enjoy the work of a certain Stephen Hawkins.”  
That made Dean laugh. An angel reading a science book. He couldn’t believe that an angel was reading a science book.   
“That’s cool. I’ll be on the lookout for more books to bring here.”  
Mammon looked almost childishly excited at that. Then again, a kid at Christmas looked apathetic in comparison. It made even Lucifer chuckle.  
“Careful, Dean is mine.”  
Of course Lucifer was only teasing because none of the angels would ever try anything. Dean also had a feeling that they all had their own interests. After all that Dean had found out about angels he had been surprised how diverse this group of fallen angels was. None of them was completely like the other. They all had so many unique things about them.  
“Uh, Dean, are you alright?”  
“Yeah, yeah. I was just thinking about our family here.”  
For a moment the whole room fell silent, which surprised Dean. He hadn’t even spoken that loud. All eyes were on him. That got annoying quickly.  
“What? Don’t tell me it’s not true!”  
Who could fault him for getting defensive? They all were staring at him. Anyone would be uncomfortable with that.   
Lucifer chuckled. He rested his hand on Dean’s.  
“Someone had to say it.”  
Dean rolled his eyes at him.   
“You’re such a sap, you know that?”  
The room slowly started to fain noise again but Dean was nearly completely sure that some of them were whispering about something. He got the feeling he always had when someone was hiding something from him.   
Beelzebub, Mammon, Moloch, and Cas left the room with a few others. Dean was incredibly confused about that. Had he said something wrong?  
“Do not worry, Dean. I think they appreciate it. They just are just as ‘good’ with their emotions as we are.”  
“Hey, you’re already better at air-quotes than Cas!”  
“And that is exactly what I am talking about. Just because we have emotions does not mean we want to deal with them.”  
“That’s gonna be my new motto from now on.”  
Lucifer laughed and Dean slowly became less tense. The others had so obviously talked about him and now they had left the room and just what was going on?  
One by one angels left and came back while Dean tried not to get tense again. Were they planning something?   
“Stop thinking about it. Whatever they are planning, they will tell you soon enough.”  
Dean glared at Lucifer for a moment, assuming that he had read his thoughts. That probably wasn’t it though. It was probably just really obvious. Going by Lucifer’s expression the latter was true. It was the kind of expression that Lucifer got whenever Dean underestimated how well Lucifer knew him.   
Suddenly Lucifer stiffened. It was such a sudden change that Dean almost flinched.   
“What’s going on?”  
“Michael. He is ready for the fight.”  
“How? I thought it doesn’t work without me?”  
“He must have found a replacement.”  
That made Dean curse. He had hoped that if he was out of Michael’s reach then the fight wouldn’t happen. Fuck Michael and his determination to go through with that fight.  
“You’re not going, right?”  
“I have to face him at the very least, Dean. Maybe I can talk with him about it.”  
“What’s the chance of him listening?”  
“Approximately the same chance of your family listening. I have a chance.”  
“You’re definitely not going alone tough.”  
“Dean, it could be dangerous.”  
“Well, I don’t give a fuck. I’m going with you and you can’t stop me.”  
Lucifer smiled at him and nodded.  
“Okay, you won. But you have to let me protect you.”  
“Only if you let me protect you.”  
They had a glaring match for a few moments and then they both smirked. Both knew exactly how it was going to go. Each of them would try to protect the other while not wanting to be protected themselves. It was just inevitable that they both would show just how stubborn they were.  
“Then let us tell the others.”  
“We heard it.”  
They had been so caught up in their discussion that they hadn’t even noticed that all of the other angels were back in the room.   
“Shit guys, don’t startle me like that!”  
Beelzebub stepped forward. He smiled at Dean.  
“You know, we all have our own goals and interests but we all appreciate that we still have this family, as you called it. We all are glad that you have joined us and we wanted to show you that appreciation.”  
The fallen angel showed him a silver blade, not unlike an angel blade in colour but in a different design.   
“This is for you, Dean. Every one of us has given a piece of their blade for this. It’s for you. You know, as part of this family.”  
Just like that Dean was speechless. He really didn’t know what to say. That wasn’t what he had expected. He looked down at the blade and after a moment he took a deep breath and took it.   
Then he laid it aside and pulled Beelzebub into a hug.  
“Thanks. All of you. So much. This is so awesome.”  
“Now you are ready to fight with Lucifer.”  
Dean grinned.  
“You can count on me.”


	30. Loss

As nervous as Dean was he was glad he was going with Lucifer. He held the blade close to himself, ready to use it if it came down to it. That blade had to be up there with the best gifts he had ever received. Now that he looked at it more he saw some Enochian engraved in it. He inspected the writing and when he read what was engraved in it he nearly teared up again.  
“Let me see.”  
Dean showed Lucifer the engraving and Lucifer smiled.  
“They put a lot of thought into it.”  
“I know. I’m gonna have to do something for them when we get back.”  
“I think you have done more than enough for them. This blade proves it.”  
“Are you trying to be a sap or is that just natural for you?”  
Lucifer chuckled. Dean rolled his eyes. They didn’t always need to talk to know what the other was thinking. Not even Lucifer’s unfair mind reading abilities were needed for them to communicate like that.  
One moment later they appeared in a… cemetery?  
“Well, that’s fucking cliché for a final fight.”  
Dean didn’t like it. At all. He didn’t want this fight to happen, especially since there was no way this would happen without collateral damage and Lucifer was bound to get hurt. That wouldn’t do. Ever.  
“My Father always had a strange sense of humour.”  
“Yeah, definitely.”  
Despite their humour both of them were tense. It was such a crucial moment. They could now either find a way to win or die. Dean took a deep breath. If they would die then at least they would… Shit.  
“Please tell me that I’ll go to Hell if I die.”  
It sounded so strange to say that but if he went to heaven he would go right into the hands of the angels. That wasn’t what he wanted, at all. It wasn’t really the best moment for these questions but it was kind of important. He would never play along with heaven’s plans. He’s had enough of this shit and especially heaven thinking they could treat them like chess pieces that could be pushed around and sacrificed according to their whim.  
“I think you would go to heaven.”  
“And there’s nothing you can do about it?”  
“Well, there is, but-“  
“You took your time, Lucifer.”  
“Michael.”  
The moment Dean saw Michael he wanted to punch him. The archangel was in Adam’s body. He was using his brother! That fucking asshole! Dean wanted to kill that bastard.  
“Our brother, seriously?”  
“He was ready to make the sacrifice for the good of the world.”  
“The good of the world? Are you fucking with me? You can’t convince me that you’re the good guy, especially since your stunt with Sammy.”  
Michael looked annoyed. Dean huffed. As if he had any right to be the annoyed one in this scenario.  
“Well, Lucifer, it seems like you keep insisting to go against Father’s plans.”  
“Father’s plans have not gotten good enough to follow them yet.”  
“You are disobeying him.”  
“Yes, very intentionally.”  
Dean was getting more and more tense. It didn’t seem like Lucifer or Michael would back down and the tension was rising. He needed to be ready in case they would start fighting.  
“This time you will not escape your fate, Lucifer.”  
“Michael, it does not have to be this way. I learned that we can make our own fate. We do not have to be confined to the script laid out for us.”  
“That is the way it is meant to be. Going against Father’s plan is the way to damnation.”  
“No, it is not. It is the way to freedom.”  
“There is no freedom down your path, Lucifer. There is only a cage to be found.”  
“Except for the literal cage Father put me in there is none. I do not understand how you can describe following rigid rules, giving your fate over to someone, having your whole life ruled over from start to finish, as freedom and describe actual freedom as being caged.”  
Dean gently touched Lucifer’s arm. He saw how passionate Lucifer was and he understood it. A few years ago he probably wouldn’t have but now he did and he couldn’t imagine going back to it. Lucifer was the one who had shown him that freedom is worth fighting for more than security. Who they were, who they would be, all that could only develop in that freedom.  
Bobby may have treated him like he wasn’t aware that there were negative consequences. He was sure that the positive outweighed the negative by a lot. He would continue to go out and hunt monsters for all eternity if it meant that people got their freedom.  
“You are insane, brother. Whatever corrupted you like that?”  
“Life, Michael. I highly doubt that you have yet felt what it means to live. You exist, you act, but you do not live. If you continue like this you will never feel what it means to live. I doubt you know happiness, I doubt you ever felt excitement, I doubt you ever knew true family bonds, and I doubt you know what it means to love.”  
Lucifer glanced towards Dean when he said that and Dean looked back. It was a small moment but for them it was more. Thinking about Lucifer’s words made Dean kind of sad that Michael had no idea about these kinds of things. It didn’t make Michael less caged that his cage wasn’t visible.  
“I do know the love of our Father and the love of heaven.”  
That got a scoff out of Dean. He glared at Michael.  
“Fuck that. You wanna know something? That ‘love’ you talk about is fucking bullshit!”  
“Dean-“  
“No, Lucifer, this needs to get out. What you idiots call love is nothing. That’s not even on the level of the most basic friendship. It’s pretend, forced. You know how I know that? Because I’ve known Belial. And don’t you dare talk bad about him. The guy wanted nothing more than for someone to be genuine, to genuinely like him, maybe even love him.”  
He had to think about Moloch, about the pain he had felt when Dean had come back with Belial’s body. How he had cried at the hunter’s funeral to honour him. How he has raged when he had seen Cas for the first time after the incident. He took a deep breath and forced himself to focus.  
“If you seriously think that what you’ve got up there is love then you need a big fucking dose of reality!”  
Lucifer obviously knew that this was hitting Dean hard and this time he was the one touching him gently. Dean leaned into the touch and sighed. He was glad that Lucifer knew exactly when to comfort him.  
“How dare you talk to me like that!”  
“You didn’t register a single thing I was saying, right?”  
“We did.”  
Dean looked over and at the edge of the cemetery he saw Bobby, Sam, and… the Trickster?  
“Gabriel?”  
Oh, that kind of made sense. Dean looked at the Trickster, honestly surprised. He wouldn’t have expected that the being that had fucked with them again and again was actually an archangel.  
“Yeah, it’s me. I decided to come out of my hiding to stop this mess.”  
Both Lucifer and Michael were staring at Gabriel. Michael spoke up.  
“Do not interfere. This is meant to happen.”  
“Again with the destiny, Mikey? Aren’t we a bit too old for that?”  
“It is Father’s will.”  
“You know, he might just be wrong for once.”  
“Do not speak like that of our Father.”  
Dean took a moment to smile over at Bobby and maybe a bit at Sam. They had come, after all. That meant a lot to Dean. He really hadn’t thought that they would come. It eased the tension in him a bit. They might not agree on all this stuff with him but they had still come.  
Lucifer seemed to have other concerns.  
“Gabriel, please. We both do not want this fight but leave. I do not want you to get hurt.”  
Strangely it was Gabriel who was surprised now. Dean understood. It was strange to hear those caring words from the one he wouldn’t expect it from. After all, Dean would bet that they others talked bad about Lucifer. All of them.  
“This fight will happen, just like Father predicted and wills it.”  
It seemed like both Lucifer and Gabriel were getting exasperated with Michael now. That wasn’t a good sign. Dean would make sure that Lucifer wouldn’t be tempted to attack him.  
“Then you will have to fight me too.”  
Gabriel went in between them, not directly on Lucifer’s side but he was facing him.  
“And me.”  
Dean took a step forward, directly in front of Lucifer.  
“And we’re in your way too.”  
Both Bobby and Sam stepped closer. Dean still couldn’t believe that they helped them. After all that happened. He was incredibly thankful for that. After this was over he would walk up to Sam and tell him that he forgave him.  
Michael had to realize that, especially with the suboptimal that great vessel, he wouldn’t win this fight because he became angry.  
“Father’s words have to be followed! If not now then at another time!”  
Those words rang several alarm bells in Dean’s mind. Of course, Michael wasn’t above trickery, especially when it was about following the plans of his father.  
His fears were quickly proven right as Michael said words too old to even be Enochian and suddenly the ground opened behind Lucifer.  
“I banish you back in the cage until new chosen vessels emerge.”  
Dean turned around immediately and stared in shock as Lucifer was pulled towards the hole. He barely heard Gabriel shout at Michael and Sam and Bobby shout at him. All he saw was Lucifer fighting again the pull of the cage and losing.  
In a last desperate attempt to save him he grabbed Lucifer’s hand… and screamed as he was instead dragged into the cage with him.  
There was a complete chaos of screams for a moment until it died down.  
The cage was closed. Lucifer and Dean were gone.  
Sam went from shocked and sad to furious in a moment.  
“You… You absolute monster! Give back my brother!”  
He went up to Michael but was stopped in his tracks by an invisible force holding him.  
“I have postponed the fight for now. If you want to see your brother again I recommend taking the wife we pick out for you. Lucifer and in addition your brother will be free again once a new generation is ready.”  
Gabriel stepped forward.  
“Michael, why are you so cruel?”  
“I am not. I make sure that Father’s will is done, nothing more.”  
One moment later he was gone. The invisible force was gone and Sam fell to his knees. He was so shocked that he couldn’t even cry. Yet.  
For a long while it was silent in the cemetery. Then finally a sob escaped Sam.  
“What do we do now?”  
“I don’t know.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, that's it!  
> I mean, possibly. I'm not sure if I'll write a sequel or not. 
> 
> I hope you all enjoyed my little (or not so little) story.
> 
> Here at the end I again want to thank everyone who read this, left kudos, left comments. Especially my most loyal readers (you know who you are!).


End file.
